Position: Assistant Manager

Age: 49

Notes: Manchester United have appointed former Portugal and South Africa coach Carlos Queiroz as their new assistant manager. United have confirmed that Mozambique-born Queiroz will become the first foreign coach to work at Old Trafford, and will replace Jim Ryan, who had served as manager Sir Alex Ferguson's right-hand man after the departure of Steve McClaren to Middlesbrough last summer. Ferguson has been looking for a permanent No 2 ever since, as Ryan's promotion from within the Old Trafford ranks was only a temporary appointment. Queiroz was South Africa boss until March of this year, having been appointed in the summer of 2000. Under him they successfully qualified for the World Cup finals, but their disappointing performance in the African Nations Cup, where they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by hosts Mali, led to his downfall. As a result South Africa's technical director Jomo Sono decided he would select the team for the first of the World Cup warm-up matches, prompting 49-year-old Queiroz to resign. He was quoted at the time as saying: "My future lies with a project with the potential for success." Confirming his United move, he said: "It is a great privilege to join Manchester United and I am proud and honoured to be given this opportunity. With my full commitment and devotion to the job I hope to help the club achieve even more success in the coming years and meet the high expectations of Manchester United fans." Boss Ferguson said: "I'm really pleased that we have Carlos on board. He is someone I've been looking at for quite a while. I know he has an excellent track record in the past as a manager, particularly with South Africa and Portugal, and he is known as an innovative coach. I feel that he is someone who will come in and challenge the players," he told the United website. Red Devils chief executive Peter Kenyon added: "We're absolutely delighted. Carlos's experience will add a great deal to what is already a good coaching staff that's helped us collect many trophies over the last few years. "He has a very broad background. In Portugal he was credited with developing the youth system there and bringing some of their golden era of players through like [Joao] Pinto and [Luis] Figo. "He's also managed in the USA and Japan, so he brings with him a wealth of international football experience. "Sir Alex is also delighted. He's been looking at Carlos for some time. It's a critical role and it's all part of ensuring that in the next three years with Sir Alex, he's got the best people around him," he told MUTV