Monday, August 16, 2010

Giggs aimed to take over Man Utd from Sir Alex!

Ryan Giggs has won every medal going as a Manchester United player - now he wants to do the same as Old Trafford boss.

After making a start on his coaching badges alongside fellow United veterans Gary Neville and Paul Scholes, Giggs is ready to turn his attention to the world of management.


The former Wales international has admitted he wants to follow in the footsteps of other graduates of the Sir Alex Ferguson academy at Old Trafford like Steve Bruce, Mark Hughes, Roy Keane, Bryan Robson and Paul Ince.

And he said: "My aim would be to manage either Manchester United or Wales."
Giggs, who will be 37 in November, has treated every season since he was 30 as if it was his last as a player.

Long gone are his days of flying down the wing and making some of the most accomplished right-backs in the game look distinctly average.

Now, it seems, it is time to plan for a possible future in coaching.

"I don't think I'll know whether I'll cope with the aggravation until I've finished playing and say 'what do I do now'?" he added.


"Football is such a massive part of my life and to just stop in your late 30s and do nothing is tough.

"Even though there is so much stress involved, I think a lot of players become managers and really enjoy it.

"I think Roy Keane really enjoys it."

Keane was one player United boss Sir Alex axed ruthlessly from his squad when seemingly still a force to be reckoned with, and Giggs knows no player is safe at a fiercely competitive club like United.


And even after 20 years at Old Trafford, Giggs still has the feeling, just like any other player, that he could be cast aside at any moment. It is what has driven him to succeed, even before making his debut against Everton back in 1991.

"My medals are something I'll look back on in years to come," he said.

"What motivates me from year to year is something as simple as seeing a young player produce a bit of skill, or in my case, seeing Rafael bombing past you in training.


"Seeing a young player develop really gets me going, as does the enthusiasm of the manager and the look on his face when we report to pre-season training.

"I can see his hunger and how much it hurt that we lost out to Chelsea last year and how we got knocked out of the Champions League.

"He has told us what he expects of us this year and Manchester United is basically all about winning - anything else is just not worth thinking about.


"Whether it be in training or in games, you can't let your standards slip.

"Of course, you can just not play well for three or four games, but the manager is not stupid, he has seen things happen over the years and he knows you can come back if you apply yourself.

"If you try everything and it doesn't come back then there is something wrong.

"In that case you go to a new club or you're finished.

"I've spent 20 years at United and it has never changed.


"You're never sure how far you are from being shown the door. It's as simple as that."
One man unlikely to be shown the door any time soon, is their superstar striker Wayne Rooney.

But Giggs insists the England man isn't the finished article yet and must reproduce last season's brilliant form year after year to be ranked alongside Old Trafford greats like Eric Cantona, Keane and Robson.

Giggs has played alongside all the United legends of the modern era and believes Rooney is fast on his way to becoming one of the club's greatest-ever players. And this comes from a man who watched the likes of David Beckham, Cristiano Ronaldo, Peter Schmeichel, Paul Scholes, Ruud van Nistelrooy, not to mention Keane and Cantona, walk through the gates of Old Trafford before earning iconic status at the biggest club in the land.


Nobody knows better than Giggs, a veteran of more than 800 games, what it takes to be mentioned in the same breath as the superstar names he has lined up with during a career that has yielded 11 Premier League titles and two Champions League triumphs.

And he rates Rooney as highly in terms of natural talent as any player he has seen.

In fact Giggs is that that, once his team-mate regains full sharpness, he will cement his place in United folklore by producing the kind of form he showed last season, long into the future.

"Wayne is on that level with the United greats," he said.


"He scored 30-odd goals last season and there aren't many players who have done that in this club's history.

"To put him up there with them permanently he has to do it consistently year after year, season after season and I'm sure he will.

"In terms of talent, he is one of the best I've ever seen. The likes of Wayne and Ronaldo are the best I've come across."

Giggs, though, has his own pecking order when it comes to the Old Trafford greats. "Paul Scholes is like no other player I have known," he said. "He controls the tempo of a game and he is up there with the very best.


"Roy Keane was an immense driving force and such a winner.

"Peter Schmeichel was probably the best goalkeeper in the world for five years.

"It's hard to cut it down to three players but if I had to, they would be the three.

"Wayne is already close to that group and will get there in time."

Giggs agrees with the England manager Fabio Capello's view that Rooney needs more games to get back to his best.


"I think Fabio is right because you do need five or six games to hit your peak and regain your match fitness," he said.

"He has only had three and a half matches but has looked fit and sharp in training.

"He didn't have a great World Cup but it's possible to tune back into how he was playing last season simply because he is playing for a different team.

"For England, you probably don't get as many chances as you do playing for United.
"At Old Trafford, you're playing in a squad with 20-25 quality players.

"You're going to get more chances, especially if you're playing at Old Trafford, and Wayne will be there to put them away."

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