Darren Fletcher has revealed he asked for Sir Alex Ferguson's blessing before accepting the manager's job at Manchester United.
Fletcher was named caretaker boss following the decision to sack head coach Ruben Amorim on Monday.
The former midfielder made his United debut in 2003 under Ferguson -- who turned 84 on New Year's Eve -- and went on to win five Premier League titles with the Scot.
"I don't like to make any major decisions or things without speaking to Sir Alex," Fletcher said.
"I've got a really good relationship with Sir Alex so he's probably the first person on the phone actually so I wanted to speak to him first. And ultimately to get his blessing, to be perfectly honest with you.
"I think he deserves that respect. I wanted to run it by him and see what he thought and he was supportive of it."
Fletcher will take charge of his first game against Burnley on Wednesday.
The 41-year-old has made the step up from coaching United's under-18s, who regularly play with a back four.
- 12 candidates to replace Amorim at Manchester United
- The inside story of why Man United sacked Ruben Amorim
- Ogden: Man United must go big with next manager after firing Amorim
And while he stopped short of confirming there will be a change of system at Turf Moor, Fletcher hinted that he's ready to ditch Amorim's back three at the earliest opportunity.
"We don't know yet, I can't disclose that," Fletcher said.
"I think when you talk about the under-18s, that's a style and a system that the club thinks is best for developing players.
"Of course, you try and win every football game, but fundamentally we're trying to develop players and that formation definitely suits that. So that's a club formation that we use and it's a formation that I've been used to playing for a long time as well."
