The Norwegian was sacked in November after a dismal run of results that culminated in a 4-1 defeat to Watford at Vicarage Road.
Ralf Rangnick has since replaced Solskjaer at Old Trafford, taking over as interim manager for the remainder of the season before taking on a two-year consultancy role.
United have long admired Rangnick but Murtough insists the club didn’t speak to the German before sacking Solskjaer out of respect for the Norwegian.
‘Out of respect for Ole, we did not approach other managers before he left,’ said Murtough.
‘Our plan then was to appoint an experienced interim manager and Ralf was our clear first choice
‘We were all feeling optimistic at that time about the strong start to the season.
‘There were grounds for confidence that we were going to continue building on the progress we saw in the prior two seasons.
‘After the promising early-season results, things went off plan. As a club, we felt Ole had earned the right to be given the chance to turn things round, but didn’t get a reaction after the international break, and the Watford game made it clear change was needed
‘We’re all disappointed at Ole’s departure, but he deserves to be judged on his record over the past three years, not his last few weeks – secured our first back-to-back top-three finishes since Sir Alex Ferguson retired and came so close to winning silverware in the Europa League Final last May.
‘He re-set the club’s culture and reshaped the squad, leaving us in a stronger position today than when he returned in 2018.’
Rangnick’s appointment affords the club time until the end of the season to conduct a search for a long-term successor to Solskjaer.
Mauricio Pochettino, the Paris Saint-Germain manager, is top of United’s wishlist while Erik Ten Hag and Brendan Rodgers are also admired.
‘By bringing in Ralf, we can now take time to run a thorough process for our next permanent manager,’ said Murtough.
‘Recruiting a manager is one of the most important decisions a football club makes so we want to do it in a careful and considered fashion.
‘We have an agreement with Ralf to stay on for a further two years in a consultancy role – allowing us to continue drawing on his expertise and advice to support our longer-term goals.’
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