Giggs set to leave Man United – source
Ryan Giggs is set to end his 29-year association with Manchester United by turning down a reduced role on Jose Mourinho’s coaching staff, a source close to the Welshman has told ESPN FC.
Mourinho is expected to bring assistants Rui Faria and Silvino Louro into his backroom staff, leaving no place for Giggs, who acted as Louis van Gaal’s No. 2.
Giggs, who has one year left on his United contract, has been on holiday in Dubai considering his future and returns to England on Thursday to meet Mourinho.
The Daily Telegraph and The Times reported that United have offered the 42-year-old a role linking the first team and under-21s but he will now look to forge a career as a manager in his own right.
A source had previously told ESPN FC that Giggs was planning to leave if offered a minor role and added on Thursday that his stance had not changed, meaning he is now likely to leave.
It was a decision made despite the boyhood United fan’s emotional ties with the club, having joined them as a schoolboy in 1987 before breaking into the first team in March 1991. He ended a decorated playing career — which included two Champions League titles and 13 Premier League trophies — in May 2014.
After a brief stint as interim manager in the wake of David Moyes’ sacking, he then became assistant manager under Van Gaal.
Van Gaal had indicated that, during his reign, Giggs was being groomed as a potential next manager of United. But the club’s decision to turn to Mourinho has caused Giggs to consider his future and cut ties with Old Trafford.
