A tribute to Ryan Giggs

youngrell

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Let me start off by saying that I hope this thread doesn’t descend into typical shitposts about Giggs’ personal life or the things he’s done off the field, it would be much better if we can celebrate Ryan Giggs the player here instead.

That being said, the above is one of the reasons I feel compelled to make this tribute, because since revelations about Giggs’ affairs came to light in 2011, we have seen an incredible underrating of his abilities and impact on Manchester United by those who cannot look past this.

The other reason being, he is my all-time favourite footballer. That wasn’t always the case, my first love was Andrei Kanchelskis but both Cantona and Giggs soon took over as they excited my young eyes with their skill, and in particular Giggs with his speed and silky dribbling.

Giggs’ mazy runs at the opponents’ defence was such a joy to watch, the way he would swerve his body to send the defender one way and by the time the defender had turned, Giggs was already going the opposite direction, dribble after dribble, game after game. He also scored some great individual goals and made assists like they were running out of fashion, he really did light up Old Trafford in his early years, tearing people apart again and again.

I can’t say Giggs was the greatest dribbler of all time, but he was certainly one of the most pleasing on the eye. He would glide effortlessly at speed with amazing balance and grace, and this on some really dodgy surfaces at the time. One can only imagine how Giggs would fare in today’s game, probably cutting in from the right in a more advanced position, increasing his goal tally while painting his crazy assist output. He may even fit in the second striker role, where I imagine his speed and guile would be absolutely devastating.

Anyway, I digress.

Another aspect of Giggs’ game that I loved was his tracking back with slide tackles, which always seemed to be timed perfectly and he had the ability to return to his feet with the ball in a single motion, turning defence into attack immediately. I think his defensive contributions are often forgotten, possibly because of Becks’ workrate on the opposite flank being off the scale at the same time, but Giggsy put in the work too and wasn’t afraid of getting stuck in when required.

During his long and storied career, Giggs has numerous moments of individual brilliance, which we are all aware of, such as the FA Cup goal, the CL semi equaliser vs Juve in ’99, the 2 goals off the bench vs Juve in Turin in ’03, and there’s many more.

But some other moments were just brilliant because of their importance or timing. Think to some of our best moments during SAF’s time as manager. Sheringham’s CL final goal, Macheda’s winner vs Villa in ’09, Owen’s winner in the 4-3 derby, it was Giggs setting them up each time and it goes on and on. People who mention clutch players rarely mention Giggs, but he produced time and again in the big moments for us.

If you don’t already, I implore you to watch United’s ‘Goal of the Day’ videos through their social channels. It’s amazing how many times Giggs crops up either with the assist or directly involved in the move to set the goal up. His constant presence during Sir Alex’s success is overlooked.

We all know Giggs’ amazing assist record, but I posted some stats before in the Giggs vs Bale thread which were mostly ignored but blew my mind at the time of discovering them:

Giggs played in 941 of 1,235 games under SAF since his debut, being directly involved in 476 goals (168 goals, 308 assists). This makes up 19.4% of all goals scored under Sir Alex since Ryan’s debut. That discounts those that he was involved in without the final two touches, of which I’m sure there are many.

The above stats don’t even cover only games where Giggs was actually playing. If you took an average goals scored across the whole time, the percentage of goals he’s involved in then shifts to around 25.5%. That’s one player, involved in a quarter of our goals, for 941 games (or 62.7% of games under SAF (76.2% since RG debut)).

Just incredible.

I purposefully haven’t posted any videos, as I hope others can contribute with their favourite Giggs moments to build on the thread. And as I said at the start, please let’s just celebrate the player and his phenomenal contribution to this club and its success.

Almost forgot to mention his glorious man chest :drool:
 
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Sparky_Hughes

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One of the best players to ever wear the shirt, with a career that will probably never be surpassed in achievement and longevity in my life time. Not sure if my memory is playing tricks on me, but I seem to remember him ALWAYS playing superbly against Juve for some reason, back when they were probably the best team in the world. And who can forget the best single goal in FA cup history?
 

Baneofthegame

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I’ll still never forget his goal against Arsenal in the FA cup semi, was honestly the best thing I’d ever seen at the time.
 

united_99

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Incredible player and career. And what a trophy cabinet.
I was too young in 1992 to watch much football, so I have only heard the story and don’t remember the exact situation:
In 1992 after narrowly losing the league to Leeds after a game there were Leeds fans (or was it Liverpool fans?) waiting for an 18 year old Giggs and asking for an autograph. Giggs went over and signed, they then made fun of him and ripped the paper. Fergie saw it and told him to never forget what just happened.
This player then went on to win the league 13 times, while it went only downwards forever for Leeds (if it were Liverpool fans then it wouldn’t change much either, as they would not win the league again for almost three decades).
 

Bojan11

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Would be priceless in todays game. He played in the 4-4-2 era, where his job was to create for the two strikers. Put him in the current era, where teams play with one striker and he’d be scoring more goals, maybe even played up front.
 

11101

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Brilliant player, one of the few who was able to adapt through injuries and ageing without ever really losing the ability to perform at the top level. He would be the first or second name on the team sheet in pretty much any side in the world now.

On the flip side, i don't think he was ever quite as good as some sections of fans thought he was. I'd have him in the second tier behind the likes of R9, Zidane, Henry and Maldini in that era. It was his longevity at the top that made him so great, he never really challenged to be the best in the world at any one time.
 

horsechoker

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I think the fact that he played at the highest level for more than two decades speaks volumes of his ability.
 

RedDevilzFox

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Brilliant player, one of the few who was able to adapt through injuries and ageing without ever really losing the ability to perform at the top level. He would be the first or second name on the team sheet in pretty much any side in the world now.

On the flip side, i don't think he was ever quite as good as some sections of fans thought he was. I'd have him in the second tier behind the likes of R9, Zidane, Henry and Maldini in that era. It was his longevity at the top that made him so great, he never really challenged to be the best in the world at any one time.
He wasn't in the tier with those players and but I also feel he was underrated because he played in the PL when Serie a and La Liga used to be all the rage and English league was looked down upon. I would say he was not too far behind the likes of Figo, which is probably a closer comparison.

Terrible human being, mind you.
 

acnumber9

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but I seem to remember him ALWAYS playing superbly against Juve for some reason,
That’s because he did. Teams on the continent were terrified of Ryan Giggs. He always lit it up on the European nights at Old Trafford.
 

RUCK4444

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I heard he left a few tributes of his own... in his brothers wife.. hey lads? Am I right? :angel:

Nah I love Giggsy the player, being from Cardiff myself and watching him tear it up for United he’s a major reason I support the club, but mostly Cantona.

What a player, what a career. Such a shame what came to light because it has tarnished his reputation but rightly so in some respects. Doesn’t mean he wasn’t one of the best the PL has seen and I think most oppo fans would begrudgingly agree with that.
 

King7Eric

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There is no one I'd rather who had the ball in and around the box in the final minutes of a game if we need a goal than Giggs. Because you just know he's gonna play the right pass that will create a goal-scoring opportunity. The most underrated aspect of his game was his composure when it came to picking out a pass in a high-pressure situation, second to none.
 

redrobed

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He was a generational talent and the very best at what he did. Unfortunately for him he played for us and so the ABU media decided to try dragging his name through the dirt with false accusations but memories of great moments that summed him up like the Arsenal FA cup goal can never be erased.

Get this man a statue
 

GueRed

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Even though in his latter years (2003 onwards) he was a better all round and refined footballer, I think I prefered him in the 90's.

In the 90's although his end product was often inconsistent the flying winger Giggs was so fecking EXCITING to watch. Seeing him constantly run at defenders at full pelt with and without the ball was a joy to watch. He used to make every full-back in Europe shit themselves when he ran at them. :lol: It was real fun to watch.

Everytime young Giggs got that ball on the touchline ready to take on a full-back everyone in the ground were up off their seat.

The wing wizard Giggs is the most exciting player i have seen wear the United shirt.
 

SER19

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Great post. A player who has become absurdly divisive due to personal life and his longevity meaning that his explosive best is overlooked far too much.

He was the best winger in the world in 93 94 and did so many things through his career that very few players now could do. Giggs at various stages in his career would be the best wide player in the current PL by a distance and young Giggs would have made a frightening 'wide forward' or whatever its called

A phenomenal player that we came to just take for granted. Some of those CL nights were unforgettable
 

Lay

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Was the reason I supported the club. But he also became the player that frustrated me the most. There was a period when he didn’t seem to give a feck, losing the ball cheaply and trying to beat his man over and over again.

However, despite that, on his day he was incredible and his transition to centre midfield was great. Brilliant player and a legend at the club
 

SATA

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That goal at Fulham was a peach. I have no idea how he scored from that. It was slightly behind him and the improvisation after that was brilliant
 

Bebestation

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A legend of a player but a scout that should be no more. His recommendation of Martial and James is questionable.
 

youngrell

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On the flip side, i don't think he was ever quite as good as some sections of fans thought he was. I'd have him in the second tier behind the likes of R9, Zidane, Henry and Maldini in that era. It was his longevity at the top that made him so great, he never really challenged to be the best in the world at any one time.
You are right, he didn't quite reach those heights but very few do.

It's interesting to imagine how close he could have come to those if he had the international stage that these guys had, mind you.
 

lex talionis

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A legend of the greatest football club on the planet, Ryan Giggs. He had a unique combination of taking on responsibility with individual genius as well as inspired team play. I really can’t think of an occasion where, on the pitch, he didn’t give us maximum effort.

I named my cat, Giggsy, after him.
 

The holy trinity 68

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I heard he left a few tributes of his own... in his brothers wife.. hey lads? Am I right? :angel:

Nah I love Giggsy the player, being from Cardiff myself and watching him tear it up for United he’s a major reason I support the club, but mostly Cantona.

What a player, what a career. Such a shame what came to light because it has tarnished his reputation but rightly so in some respects. Doesn’t mean he wasn’t one of the best the PL has seen and I think most oppo fans would begrudgingly agree with that.
The OP literally said keep this shit out of this thread, there is always one that has to bring that up when speaking about Giggs. Do we have to bring that up? Best, Beckham Rooney, etc were no saints in their personal life either but that kind of stuff should be left out of discussing our players and how they were on the pitch.
 

Foxbatt

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Johan Cruyff thinks he was better than Cantona. The only British player he wanted in his Barca side.
 

RUCK4444

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The OP literally said keep this shit out of this thread, there is always one that has to bring that up when speaking about Giggs. Do we have to bring that up? Best, Beckham Rooney, etc were no saints in their personal life either but that kind of stuff should be left out of discussing our players and how they were on the pitch.
Oh keep it down, clearly joking and being sarcastic, he’s one of my football idols.

Get a grip. For sake of argument though, you can’t compare Becks cheating on his wife with Giggsy sleeping with his brothers wife repeatedly for years!? :lol:
If you have a brother you would know that is possibly the scummiest thing you can do as a human.

Amazing player and a brilliant professional, awful person.
 

The holy trinity 68

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Oh keep it down, clearly joking and being sarcastic, he’s one of my football idols.

Get a grip. For sake of argument though, you can’t compare Becks cheating on his wife with Giggsy sleeping with his brothers wife repeatedly for years!? :lol:
If you have a brother you would know that is possibly the scummiest thing you can do as a human.

Amazing player and a brilliant professional, awful person.
It is not the same but it is still morally wrong and frowned up regardless.
 

0le

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Feck, I thought he had passed away or something.
 

Zlatan 7

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Was my favourite player when growing up in the nineties, his fa cup goal kind of dwarfs any other strong memories of goals of his I have, the 99 final scuff to sheringham and the Owen assist come to mind after that.

had his skills video and played it to death trying to be the next Ryan Giggs.
 

Kivu

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He was so exciting to watch in the 90's and then transformed his play from 00's onwards. One of my all-time favorite players. That assist to Van Persie in the West Ham FA Cup game, sheer brilliance (can anyone post that link?):D
 

RUCK4444

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It is not the same but it is still morally wrong and frowned up regardless.
Yeah of course. I don't take anything away from Giggsy, he's an absolute club legend, no doubt about that whatsoever.

I was actually personally gutted when the news broke about his private life, I knew it would tarnish what is probably the best PL career of any footballer on these shores. That's the price you pay I suppose. The trouble is players/celebrities private lives do get intertwined with their professional careers, many people are more interested in their their private lives bizarrely, the press certainly know it as well.
 

Dr. Dwayne

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I was actually personally gutted when the news broke about his private life, I knew it would tarnish what is probably the best PL career of any footballer on these shores. That's the price you pay I suppose. The trouble is players/celebrities private lives do get intertwined with their professional careers, many people are more interested in their their private lives bizarrely, the press certainly know it as well.
That's great but we're not here to discuss his private life. Why can't you stop bringing it up?
 

rron10

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I have grown up as a kid supporting Manchester United in the mid 90's and Giggs was one of the best. I cannot think of a many better left wingers in that era or even afterwards.
His longevity and the fact he adapted to different roles/positions, when he lost a bit of pace due to age is incredible. He was spectacular, but not the regular superstar, he was a team player and that is why Sir Alex kept him for so long, even at the later stage of his career.
He deserves a statue without doubt.