Ipswich Town are set to appoint Manchester United coach Kieran McKenna as their new manager.

Sky Sports and The Athletic have both reported that the 35-year-old is in advanced talks to replace Paul Cook in the Portman Road hot-seat.

An announcement could be made tomorrow, with McKenna then likely to watch from the stands as current interim boss John McGreal takes charge of Saturday's near sell-out League One home clash against Sunderland.

East Anglian Daily Times: Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (centre) with both first team coach's Michael Carrick (left) and Kieran McKenna during the UEFA Europa League round of 16 first leg match at Linzer Stadion, Linz.Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer (centre) with both first team coach's Michael Carrick (left) and Kieran McKenna during the UEFA Europa League round of 16 first leg match at Linzer Stadion, Linz. (Image: PA Archive/PA Images)

Bet Victor have stopped taking bets on the identity of Town's new boss.

McKenna was in Tottenham's youth set up as a player and represented Northern Ireland at U21 level before being forced to retire at the age of 22 due to a chronic hip problem.

MORE: Town fans on McKenna - great move or big risk?

After studying sports science at Loughborough University, he took on a coaching role back at Spurs. He was named their Under-18s manager in 2015 at the age of 29 and soon led them to the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup.

Having been coveted by Liverpool when Brendan Rodgers was in charge, McKenna joined Manchester United, the club he grew up passionately supporting, as U18s boss in 2016 and subsequently led them to a league title.

By 2018, he had been promoted to the first team set-up to assist Jose Mourinho alongside Michael Carrick. He continued with that role alongside Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and, in recent weeks, new interim manager Ralf Rangnick.

The Manchester Evening News reports: "It's understood Rangnick had enjoyed working with McKenna, who was sat next to the manager at Carrow Road on Saturday, but he accepted that the chance of moving into a managerial position was too good to turn down."

Former Town manager Jim Magilton, now the Irish Football Association's elite performance director, has said of McKenna: "He is a meticulous planner yet every session is spontaneous.

"Nothing is set in stone. He adjusts the session to how the players are and gets what he wants out of the session. Everything is linked and game related. Nothing is for show – it has to be about the game."