Sir Alex Ferguson suggests David Moyes was not Man Utd's top choice

David Moyes was appointed Manchester United manager after "several very desirable candidates were unavailable", Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed.

The list of names was headed up by Pep Guardiola and also included Jose Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp.

Ferguson makes the claim in his new book 'Leading' as he outlines the selection process which led to Moyes' taking over from him when he retired in 2013.

He said: "I asked Pep to phone me before he accepted an offer from another club but he didn't and wound up joining Bayern Munich in July 2013.

"When we started the process of looking for my replacement, we established that several very desirable candidates were unavailable.

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"It became apparent that Jose Mourinho had given his word to Roman Abramovich that he would return to Chelsea and that Carlo Ancelotti would succeed him at Real Madrid.

"We also knew that Jurgen Klopp was happy at Borussia Dortmund and would be signing a new contract.

"Meantime, Louis van Gaal had undertaken to lead the Dutch attempt to win the 2014 World Cup."

Moyes only lasted 10 months at Old Trafford before he was sacked but Ferguson still believes it was the right choice to bring him in based on his track record.

Where he went wrong, Ferguson argues, was with his decision to overhaul his backroom staff following his arrival.

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The 73-year-old added: "We chose David Moyes. He had been consistent in his job at Everton, had a good spell there - 11 years - and showed appetite.

"Unfortunately, somehow it didn't work out for David. The process was perfect. It was a good process.

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"I'm sure there are things that David would do differently if he had the opportunity to relive his time at Old Trafford.

"Such as keeping Mick Phelan [Ferguson's assistant], who would have been the invaluable guide to the many layers of the club that Ryan Giggs is to Louis van Gaal today.

"There is no point suddenly changing routines players are comfortable with. It's counterproductive, saps morale and immediately provokes players to question the new man's motives."

Watch a full 30-minute interview with Sir Alex Ferguson on Sky Sports 1 at 10.15pm on Tuesday.