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The Ryan Giggs Referendum

By on May 24, 2016

Louis van Gaal has officially been sacked as the manager of Manchester United and rumor has it that Jose Mourinho is waiting in the wings to become the new main man in the Old Trafford hot seat. In the coming days, the club will look to finalize a deal with Mourinho and, intriguingly, decide the fate of assistant manager Ryan Giggs.

It’s a bit like the upcoming EU Referendum in Britain in a broad sort of sense, with the United hierarchy facing the decision to let Giggs remain or head out the door. There could be a Brexit from the European Union in late June, ending one famous long association, and so will another long term association conclude if the Welshman calls it a day with United…

Richard Lewis analyzes all the points of contention in the Ryan Referendum:

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Like David Cameron and Jeremy Corbyn, Giggs might convince United that staying with what he knows best would be the the safest option for both the club and his career. England assistant manager and former United full-back Gary Neville, for instance, is one of many English managers who have gone awry abroad, having spent a dreadful fourth months in charge of Valencia.

It has been reported that Mourinho may offer the Under-21s manager’s job to Giggs in an attempt to keep the Welshman at Old Trafford, but United chairman Ed Woodward is likely to think that the pair would be better united than divided. United are certainly be reluctant to as lose the legend and will hope that Mourinho can mentor Giggs just as the “Special One” learned his trade under Sir Bobby Robson and even Louis van Gaal himself in the 90s.

Mourinho already has a history of fostering top-notch managerial talent, his former assistant Steve Clarke going on to manager West Bromwich Albion and Reading and Brendan Rodgers, Mourinho’s ex-under-21s coach at Chelsea, has enjoyed successful spells in charge of Liverpool and Swansea City.

Other top managers across Europe learned their trade with Under-21 coaching experience, notably Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid and Pep Guardiola at Barcelona.

Moreover, Mourinho has never held a managerial position for over three years in his entire career, even in his most successful tenures, and Giggs seems the natural next-in-line to take over come the 2019/2020 season. Giggs could choose the trendy option of taking a sabbatical, but with so much left to learn at his age, taking time away from the game would do little help keep himself in the picture.

There is an argument that the former Wales international could bag himself the number one spot elsewhere, but he would be out of his comfort zone and may find it hard to get a Premier League job straight away. He was linked with the managerial role at Swansea City, but now Francesco Guidolin has signed a contract and few positions will open up until next winter.

With his inside-out knowledge of United, Giggs would be more of an asset to Mourinho and will hope that the fifty-three-year-old may tame his behavior because he has been waiting for this job for so long.

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Like Boris Johnson and Nigel Farage, Giggs will be weary that the traditions of his home-land would be significantly altered under Mourinho. Whereas United are known for developing youth talent, Mourinho is hardly known for his stewardship of young players, a project Giggs is especially devoted towards.

There is already talk of all the money Mourinho and executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward will spend rebuilding the squad and young talents such Jesse Lingard, Adnan Januzaj and Marcus Rashford will struggle to find playing time under the Portuguese manager. The name seemingly at top of the Red Devils’ shopping list is Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who will be leaving Paris Saint-Germain over the summer and scored twice on his farewell appearance in their French Cup victory over Marseille last Saturday.

The 34-year-old Swede, hardly the shy and retiring type, would certainly shake up the United locker room for better or worse. The Sweden captain could be swashbuckling into Salford this from Paris this summer like a character from “The Musketeers”, with his flowing long hair and karate kicks, although United will have to beat out lucrative offers from China for Zlatan’s signature.

That said, there is also apprehension around Old Trafford regarding Mourinho’s appointment.

Giggs struggled to have meaningful input as a number two under Van Gaal and he may find it even harder to get a crucial word in edgeways with the self-proclaimed “Special One” in town.

Mourinho is known to play more mind games than Charles Xavier in “X-Men: Apocalypse” one if Mourinho doesn’t cut some unpleasant aspects of this behavior, Giggs might consider being part of the EX-United club. The rivalry between incoming Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola and that of Mourinho will heat things up in Manchester and is like the relationship of Magneto and Professor X — like Magneto, the new City boss can move metal towards him in the form of silverware. Both like to be in total control and the touchline tactics of “Days of Future Past” are likely to resurface in the Manchester Derbies of next season.

Giggs may consider youth coaching as a step down from his assistant manager role under Van Gaal’s stewardship. It is hard to see Giggs deciding to leave United this summer, but if he considers the grass to be greener by the side of another football pitch in England, it might be time for something new and unknown for the Englishman.

The Fall of Louis van Gaal’s Army!

An army which never attacks is an army which will struggle to win and that was too often the case for Louis van Gaal these past two years. Although Van Gaal insisted that he planned to see out his three-year contract at United until the very end, United’s torpid league form did him in despite lifting the FA Cup.

There be immediate pressure for Mourinho to improve on United’s fifth place Premier League finish last season and Champions League qualification is basically mandatory. Van Gaal will largely be remembered at United, such as his ‘Mike Smalling’ gaffe and giving away the private details of his hair-pulling antics in the bedroom. I’ll bet that black notebook he was always writing in during games is now on the top of a bonfire in the Algarve sun!

Life was crazy under Van Gaal and is be set to get even more insane as Mourinho and Co. go rocking up to go to war with Pep Guardiola’s City, Chelsea’s Antonio Conte, Arsene Wenger’s Arsenal, Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham and last but not least, Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester City. With all the change at the top, where will Giggs be battling come August?

About Richard Lewis

Richard Lewis can relate almost anything to football and quite often does! You may have seen Richard's previous ideas and work in the BBC Match of the Day Magazine, from 2011 to present. He is a Manchester United and England fan, but has gone to see Leyton Orient play with his O's season ticket in the 2013/14 campaign. Aside from football, Richard has written articles on Doctor Who and studies English Language and Linguistics at the University of Westminster. Aspiring sports journalist.