Manchester United are stepping up their search for a new technical director.
And they are keen to bring in a former player who understands the “culture” of the club, but ex-keeper Edwin van der Sar, now at Ajax, is not in the running.
The wording of the post is important as it will not be a director of football who comes in and completely changes the structure but, instead, will be someone who fits into the current regime.
Executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has gained a reputation as doing some of the best commercial deals in football while Matt Judge negotiates transfers, with a huge team of scouts and analysts identifying targets with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
The new technical director would fit in within that structure rather than take it over because there is a strong feeling at Old Trafford they had a good summer which pushed the club in the right direction and they are determined to stick with Solskjaer in the long term.
United spent nearly £150m on three British signings in Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Daniel James while also managing to offload Alexis Sanchez, which must be seen as a good window.
Despite being heavily linked with a role at his former club, Van der Sar has himself played down a potential return to Old Trafford.
After a season which saw Ajax reach the semi-finals of the Champions League with a young and talented group of players, the Dutchman recently hinted he would like to remain in Amsterdam for the foreseeable future.
When asked about the topic at Vincent Kompany's testimonial on Wednesday, Van der Sar said : "I am enjoying my time at Ajax. I've got a different role - chief executive.
"I am really looking forward to bringing Ajax back to the European top level - that we probably touched last year - and to make sure we get the best opportunity to stay there."
