Manchester United captain Gary Neville is glad that former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson did not become the manager at the club.

And the influential club skipper belives Blackburn manager Mark Hughes, a former big name at Old Trafford, could go on to replace Sir Alex Ferguson when the Scot finally steps down.

Neville played with a clutch of one-time United players now in management but has named Hughes as the most suited to following in Ferguson's footsteps.

Ferguson performed a U-turn in 2002 after claiming he would retire at the end of the 2001/02 season and instead signed a new deal with the club.

Although there is no fixed date for his departure at the moment, the speculation over his successor is never far away and Neville's backing is sure to put Hughes' name firmly back in the frame.

The England full-back told the Daily Mirror: "Playing with the likes of Bryan Robson and Steve Bruce you always thought they'd go on to be managers.

"Some may have thought one of them would be our next manager but I certainly didn't think Sparky [Hughes] would be a manager yet out of the three.

"He's probably now the most outstanding candidate for it.

"He really seems to have taken to to management."

Neville, an influential figure in the United dressing room, is also pleased that Ferguson stayed with the Red Devils after his initial retirement plans.

"Sven [Goran-Eriksson] was mentioned a few years ago when our manager was talking about retiring.

"You think back now to the choices being talked about and they would have been disastrous."

Provided by AFP.