Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson is pleased to see Avram Grant land the Portsmouth job.

Grant is a good friend of Ferguson’s, and the two have kept in touch since the Israel-born boss left his last post at Chelsea.

United go to Pompey tomorrow and Ferguson said: “We know Avram very well from his time at Chelsea.

“He is very experienced and I’m sure he will get the right reaction from his players. We’ve kept in touch quite a lot, and he will be glad to get back into management. But he has got a challenge because when your team is bottom of the league you have got a real task on your hands. But hopefully he can manage that.”