Louis van Gaal says he was surprised when Manchester United installed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as their permanent manager in March.
Solskjaer took the reins from Jose Mourinho in December and won each of his first eight games in charge of the club.
The Reds successfully bridged the gap to the Premier League's top four - which Mourinho said required a 'miracle' - and his early success was rewarded by a three-year contract.
But United's results slumped thereafter, with just two wins coming from their final 12 games of the campaign.
It cost the club a berth in next season's Champions League and Van Gaal, who was sacked as United manager in 2016 after two seasons in charge, believes United were hasty in their decision to appoint the Norwegian.
"I was very surprised he got it in spite of the winning run at the start," he told The Guardian.
"Because Manchester United is one of the biggest clubs in the world that needs a manager with experience and not a manager who has trained at one or two teams and on a lower level."
United are in the process of a restructure behind the scenes at Old Trafford, with plans in place to install a technical director for the first time in the club's history.
Former players including Rio Ferdinand and Darren Fletcher have been mooted for the role, but Van Gaal is adamant that United require a specialist to catch up with Premier League-winners Manchester City and Champions League-holders Liverpool.
"As a good player, you’re not a good manager or you’re not a good technical director," he explained.
"It’s more or less what is happening now with [Ole Gunnar] Solskjær, ex-players, old boys’ network.
"It’s not always a good choice. It can be but it’s not always a good choice."
