900 MAN

"This is embarrassing to say but I have cried twice in my life watching a football player. The first one was Maradona and the second was Ryan Giggs" - Alessandro Del Piero

"His talent is God-given. He will have wonderful skill even when he’s got his bus pass, because that sort of ability never deserts you" 

- Brian Kidd

"Ryan makes you believe there is a football God"  

- Ron Atkinson

"Giggs is the detonator, the man who can make Manchester United explode" - Jean Tigana

"There’s no way that Ryan Giggs is another George Best: he's another Ryan Giggs."

- Denis Law

"One hundred games from now? How old would that make him? Stanley Matthews played at 50 I suppose. We will just have to wait and see." - Sir Alex Ferguson

"Eric Cantona is a great player, but he's not as good as Ryan Giggs"

- Johan Cruyff

"I think Ryan Giggs must be the best player in England. He is outstanding. Any team in the world would love to have him" - John Jensen

"Like [George] Best, there is a special fantasia about him"

 - Fabio Capello      

“The first time I saw Giggsy, he was playing for Salford Boys against United’s apprentices. He was thin and wiry but he just glided past four of our apprentices as if they weren’t even there, then he put the ball in the back of the net. I just thought ‘This kid’s an absolute natural'" – Bryan Robson

"It's almost impossible to replace a player like Ryan Giggs - you do not find many players like him. He is a rarity. He has world class attributes and has achieved so much at one club. You can only look up to him"

- Sir Alex Ferguson

"I can't remember exactly how old I was but I remember pretending to be Ryan in the back garden" - Tom Cleverley

"He has achieved so much, but he is still years away from his prime, a frightening concept for defenders"

- Tommy Docherty

"All of us at Juventus agreed Manchester United were the best side we met in the Champions League. They have so many talented young players and can only get better and better. Giggs is truly world class" - Zinedine Zidane

"Beckham and Scholes have shown their talents as goalscorers for England, but Giggs is the best. He was brilliant against us and he will be even better next year"

- Alessandro Del Piero

"When he's at the top of his game, there's not a team in the world that can handle Giggs' speed and penetration" - Sir Alex Ferguson

"I remember the first time I saw him. He was 13 and he floated across the ground like a cocker spaniel chasing a piece of silver paper in the wind"

- Sir Alex Ferguson

"Ryan’s amazing. His energy, his work-rate, his passing and his movement are unbelievable. It’s a privilege to play with him. He’s 36 but plays more like a 26-year-old as he’s up and down the pitch all the time; he’s everywhere" - Ji-Sung Park

"To spend 20 years at one club is unique in this era. Ryan has been a fantastic servant to United. It will be a comforting thought if he ends his career here. When Ryan runs at players he gives them twisted blood. They don't want to be a defender any more"

- Sir Alex Ferguson

“I think it will only be when he hangs up his boots that people will realise just how remarkable a player he is and just what he has achieved” - Rio Ferdinand

“A young Giggsy was like a Ballet Dancer. I had never seen a young player like that and I had seen the Busby Babes”

 – Eric Harrison