Ryan Giggs
Ryan Giggs
29.11.1973 (51 years) (Cardiff, Wales)
Ryan Joseph Giggs (né Wilson; 29 November 1973) is a Welsh football coach and former player. Regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, Giggs played his entire professional career for Manchester United and briefly served as the club's interim manager. The son of rugby union and Wales international rugby league footballer Danny Wilson, Giggs was born in Cardiff but moved to Manchester at the age of six when his father joined Swinton RLFC. Predominantly a left midfielder, he began his career with Manchester City, but joined Manchester United on his 14th birthday in 1987. He made his professional debut for the club in 1991 and spent the next 23 years in the first team. Towards the end of the 2013–14 season, he was named as the club's interim player-manager following the sacking of David Moyes. He was named as assistant manager under Moyes' permanent replacement, Louis van Gaal, on 19 May 2014; he retired from playing the same day holding the club record for competitive appearances – 963. In addition, he became a co-owner of Salford City, alongside some of his former teammates, commonly referred to as The Class of '92. At international level, Giggs played for the Wales national team 64 times between 1991 and 2007 and was named as the captain of the Great Britain team that competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics. He is one of only 28 players to have made over 1,000 career appearances.Giggs left Manchester United in July 2016, following the appointment of José Mourinho. He was linked with a number of clubs, including Swansea City on two occasions, before being named the new manager of the Wales national team in January 2018. After a difficult first year and a initial slow start in their group, Wales under Giggs went unbeaten for the rest of 2019, finishing second and securing qualification for UEFA Euro 2020. Ultimately, Giggs did not end up managing the team at the tournament, which was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as he was arrested on suspicion of assault. His assistant manager Rob Page took charge in his absence, and continued to do so for qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup, as his bail was extended. With his trial set to take place later that summer, he resigned in June 2022, and Page was named as his successor.Giggs is one of the most decorated footballers of all time. During his time at United, he won 13 Premier League winner's medals – more than any other player in history, four FA Cup winner's medals, three League Cup winner's medals, two UEFA Champions League winner's medals, a FIFA Club World Cup winners medal, an Intercontinental Cup winner's medal, a UEFA Super Cup winner's medal and nine FA Community Shield winner's medals. Manchester United and Liverpool are the only clubs in English football history to have won more league championships than Giggs. He captained United on numerous occasions, particularly in the 2007–08 season when regular captain Gary Neville was ruled out with various injuries. Giggs also has many personal achievements. He was the first player in history to win two consecutive PFA Young Player of the Year awards (1992 and 1993), though he did not win the PFA Player of the Year award until 2009. He was the only player to play in each of the first 22 seasons of the Premier League, as well as the only player to score in each of the first 21 seasons. He was elected into the PFA Team of the Century in 2007, the Premier League Team of the Decade in 2003, as well as the FA Cup Team of the Century. Giggs holds the record for the most assists in Premier League history, with 162. He was named as BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2009. In addition to the many honours Giggs has received within football, he was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2007 Birthday Honours for his services to football.