Apr 28
Ryan Giggs – It’s SIRtainly inevitable!
With 10 Premier League titles, four FA Cup’s and two Champions League trophies to boot, Ryan Giggs has achieved more with Manchester United in eighteen years then Manchester City ever have in their entire history (although chin up Dimitar, you’ve probably won more in half a season with us too).
The recently crowned PFA Player of the Year has been enduring some pretty harsh criticism over the last few days purely because his fellow professional peers deemed it appropriate he receive the prestigious award. Yes it’s true to say that he hasn’t set the Premier League alight with his performances this season but, to be fair, who has? Ryan Giggs has epitomised professionalism and dedication to the game of football for almost two decades now and, for me, that alone is testament enough for him receiving the PFA accolade.
The critics tend to forget that Giggs has actually been a prominent member of our first-team squad this season despite only making 12 starts in the league. He has helped us become Champions of the world, he was arguably the best player on the park against Chelsea earlier in the season and scored an ultimately decisive winner against West Ham at a crucial stage of the season. He’s also set to play an important role in hopefully helping us negotiate our way past Arsenal in the Champions League semi-final too. Not bad for a player that has supposedly received the sympathy vote eh.
Remarkably our 35-year-old winger may well have been enduring years of disappointment in City blue (a painful thought isn’t it) had Sir Alex not intervened on Giggs’ 14th birthday. You clearly don’t need me to remind you of exactly what happened next but I’ll paint a brief picture of the Welshman’s career at Old Trafford to put a positive spin on all this recent negative press.
Giggs turned professional at United in November 1990, making his league debut for the club at 17-years-old on 2nd March 1991 against Everton (a good six months before young Federico Macheda had even entered the world would you believe). The City connection was once again revisited with his first league goal coming against our bitter rivals in the derby at Old Trafford back in May 1991. And just to add to the City nostalgia even further, anyone remember that goal at Maine Road in 1996? How City fans must eternally rue the one that got away!
The first winners’ medal to make its way onto the Giggs mantelpiece was the European Super Cup in November 1991 and boy have the honours been flooding in ever since. I’ve already mentioned the major trophies but it is important to note that our decorated winger was an influential part of our double winning sides of 1993/94 and 1995/96. Fast forward some ten years to last season and he was still at the forefront of our Premier League and Champions League double. Lest we forget the unprecedented treble winning season of 1999 and that goal against Arsenal. To this day it continues to send shivers down the old spine.
It was in 2001 when Giggs was awarded a testimonial match against Celtic for 10 years of truly fantastic service to the club. Here we are in 2009 and the level headed master of Old Trafford is one appearance away from 800 in a United shirt. He’s already broken Sir Bobby Charlton’s all-time appearance record at the club and who’s to say he won’t go on to claim another half century.
On the international stage we all know the story about Giggs being one of the greatest players ever not to have graced a World Cup. With 64 caps and 12 goals he was certainly a decent servant to his country and as Gilberto Silva once put it, he could have quite comfortably played for any country in the world – even Brazil.
On and off the field Giggs has been an ambassador of the game and is the perfect role model for children looking for inspiration from football. Not one for poorly timed tackles or nightclub frolics, if Carlsburg did professional footballers, Ryan Giggs would undoubtedly be the prototype they would use.
Before I close let’s get things straight. Not to harp on about it too much but at the end of the day it’s not up to us, the press or anybody else to determine whether Ryan Giggs deserved to receive the PFA Player of the Year. His fellow Manchester United teammates couldn’t vote for him, his Premier League rivals did and that’s a fact that can’t be contested. The voting system may need a revamp but that’s not Giggs’ fault is it.
So what could possibly be next on the agenda for a player that has achieved pretty much everything during his life in football? A knighthood would perhaps be the most fitting tribute and hopefully the press won’t be quite as hasty to question the Queen’s Birthday Honours list as they have with the decisions of Premier League footballers.
Related items from Red Rants:
- United get Milan, Giggs gets new deal
- FA charge Ferguson over conduct
- Ryan Giggs, tearing teams apart since 1991
- Manchester United vs Manchester City: Preview
- Red Rants’ Paper round-up
Tags: Manchester United Players
Opti (541)
Stephen (485)
RedDevilEddy (459)
Craig Mc (345)
Moscow is my heaven (272)
@Traverse: About anderson, you say you reckon ando will be used to mark fabregas and thats what i thought at first, but RedDevilEddy posted the team he went with the 4-2-3-1 formation with ando playing behind tevez with rooney and ronaldo on the wings. I know hes not much of a goal scorer but maybe we play ando there and use carrick and fletcher to mark fabregas. On the other hand ando was excellent marking fabregas last season so maybe your right and he will play there, i dont know. What do you all reckon.
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The team is – VDS, O’Shea, Rio, Vida, Skinned Sausage, Fletch, Anderson, Carrick, Rooney, Ronnie and Tev.
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass:
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@Liam: I’d rather they changed the rules about these bloody yellow cards and rescinded all past cards when you finally make it to a semi-final. Football is a spectacle and the the final is a spectacle that deserves the best players on the pitch, not in the seats due to some fucking crap that happened games ago. It’s archaic fucking rules like yellow and red cards that makes the game a sport for girly men. The game continually shoots itself in the foot because great players miss finals because of accumulation of stupid yellow cards. Just comedic and totally pussy rules that have turned the game into a pussy fest. I ask you all to go back and watch games form the 70′s and 80′s and watch how entertaining the games were and how often a a referee would book players. Probably about 75% less than today. And the game is still far dirtier today than back then. I still am bitter about Scholes missing the 99 final and especially bitter about Ballack missing the 2002 World Cup final after his goal got them into the game. That’s just wrong and the game needs to address this. There is no way Rooney makes it through then next few games without a yellow. Not with his intensity. And we will be royally bollocked for it.
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: I’m going to keep quoting this all night
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DAMN FERGIE!!!!!!
He doesnt have the balls to attack!!! they probably dropped so hard they fell off!!!
Fuck fergie!!!!!!
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That is the actual team just announced on MUTV
. Right we are off to the match – bye 
.
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this is painfull….
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@Dan: OK, now you have me really concerned.
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laugh while it last, but 7pm tomorrow, this name will be changed lol
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@Dan: Very attacking team. Arguably our best 11
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@Grognard:
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: This is soooooooooooo awsome!!!
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@Liam: you know to hell that berba, tevez, ronaldo and rooney all playing is our best team, you just dont like berbatov!
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: Thanks for doing this!!!
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@RedDevilEddy: If you are the Anderson of the team, enjoy the game from the box seats and also get ready because I’ve sold you to Valencia for a crate of oranges and a cheap whore named Yasmin.
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@Matt: We played that formation against Arsenal last season, in the FAC. The game we won 4-0? Carrick and Fletcher behind Anderson, Rooney, Nani and Park. This is a better attacking team, to be honest.
COME ON YOU REDS!!!
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@Darth Red Diablo: With that temper and his undying love and loyalty he is our John Terry. To know him is to love him but if you don’t know him and he doesn’t love you, he’s miserable old c%#&@!
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@Grognard:
But I score goals… 
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@Grognard: quite keeper, you’re easy to replace, foster will start in your place next match.
and anderson will shit on you, that i all
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@Dan: Yes and just remember Mr. Danny Kaka, the word Kaka in many languages means shit.
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: HOORAY FOR DAN!!!
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@Grognard: Anderson of personality, Alan Smith of will, Ronaldo of skillz, Rooney of heart, Young of creativity and Klaas of classy goals. Know what Im sayin?
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@Grognard:Hah, I forgot Brown was alive!
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@Grognard: In Albainan, Kaka means poo!!!
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: Me Anderson, or Abreu Anderson?
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@RedDevilEddy: Anderson couldn’t score with a cheap Brazilian whore who charged 2p.
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: Who cares, this is awsome!!!
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@Grognard: Errrrrrr go back thru my posts, I may use the word fuck, but I NEVER told anyone to fuck off, except to refer in 2nd person, i.e. Nani to tell Fergie to fuck off. Really Grog
. Besides which, I think Mr Angel RR knows I sort my own battles, and finish them in the right way, sooooooooooooooooooooo take a soothing bath Grog, preferably with a busty brunette, and come back soothed 
.
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Arsenal’s midfield looks pretty solid to me…I suppose that’s why Fergie chose to use a heavyweight (with Anderson, literally
) midfield.
I think we might have a scrappy game…but I’m awful at predictions.
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@Traverse: That lineup absolutely sucks shite. My prediction, Arsenal to shock us at home with a 1-1 draw.
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@Grognard: Maybe he cant, but I can score with the classiest of ladies anytime, anyday.
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@RedDevilEddy: Well then hopefully its like you said and ando plays behind tevez, would be great for him to score tonight and i think playing in that position may help him as we have fletcher and carrick behind so he can stay further forward.
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Bloody hell, 20 minutes to get to the game, we are pushing it tonight, but our driver just arrived, so we are hoofing it, bye again
.
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I cannot believe Berbatov and Giggs are not starting this game. Diabolical. The player of the year sits out a semi final
Oh and cheers to DAN THE MORON!
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If Walcott switches to the left wing, I think he may cause O’Shea a worst time than Evra. However, let’s hope Ronaldo/Rooney torments Gibbs and forces the Arse wingers to drop deeper…
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Ok. I’ve enabled comments on the Live Blog post. You can start off posting comments there, or whenever the live blog starts, you can also comment on the main live blog window. But do not, only select comments will be posted because it is a lot of work to live blog as well as approve comments. It also interrupts the flow of the live blog. So be nice to Stephen Darwin.
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@Matt: I think it might Carrick thats the AMF and Anderson the holding DMF with Fletch. It worked the last time when Anderson was pissing over Fabregas…it might work again today…
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@RedDevilEddy: It means poo in Greek too. And apparently now we find out it also means FUCKING MORON, Right Dan?
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@Craig Mc: Busty brunettes mate. Plural. Grog has a large bathtub.
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@RedDevilEddy: So can a pimp.
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@Jon: yeah thats another possibility, dunno how theyre gonna go though, guess were gonna have to wait and see.
By the way does anyone have any decent links to the game, would be much appreciated.
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@Matt: where u from mate? The States?
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Move on to the next thread. This is bound to get slow soon.
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@Grognard:
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@Matt: Try this fella.
http://www.iraqgoals.net/ch1.html
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@Red Ranter: we cant post on that thread bcause of the live blog…
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Tevez will do it tonight for us lads,im sur of it
surely we’l score couple goals past this defence tonight?!!
nervous as hell, hate these wee pricks…
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@Dan is a stupid moron who is not good enough to wipe the crack of dean windass: of course you can. there are already 3 comments there.
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