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Ryan Giggs urges Wales youngsters to follow Marcus Rashford's Man Utd rise
RYAN GIGGS has urged his young stars to follow Marcus Rashford’s lead and impress at the top level as he prepares for his first games in charge of Wales.
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Giggs insists he won’t be afraid to throw the likes of Liverpool tyros Ben Woodburn and Harry Wilson straight into action in his team’s China Cup campaign.
Wales face China in Nanning on Thursday before meeting either Uruguay or the Czech Republic.
“I’m not afraid to give young players a chance. I did that in my four games in charge of Manchester United and I gave Tom Lawrence and James Wilson their debuts,” Giggs said.
“If I see young players perform in training, I then want to see if they can do it on the pitch. It has never been a problem for me giving young players a chance.
“I have seen Marcus Rashford develop and seen him given a chance. Marcus benefited from someone else getting injured in the warm-up and when I got my chance at United, it was Lee Sharpe who got injured. I couldn’t see a way into the first team.
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“Sharpey had won PFA young player of the year and he was playing for England. I was thinking he is in my position. It was bad luck for Sharpey, but lucky for me and you have to take that chance.
“That is up to the young player – you give them a chance and they have to take it. The easy bit is getting in the team, the hard bit is staying in it.”
Giggs was assistant manager at United when Rashford made his Old Trafford debut as a late replacement for Anthony Martial in a Europa League clash against FC Midtjylland in 2016.
Rashford scored twice in that game and has gone on to become a regular for United and England.
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Giggs has lost Chelsea talent Ethan Ampadu to injury for the trip to the Far East, but has urged his own teenage talents to step up to the plate.
Woodburn, Wilson, Brentford’s Christopher Mepham and Norwich’s Marley Watkins are all in contention to face China on Thursday.
Giggs’ star man Gareth Bale flew to the Far East yesterday (MON) after scoring in Real Madrid’s 6-3 thrashing of Girona on Sunday.
“Young players as well as older players can give you that inspiration,” said Giggs.
“They are aggressive and the older guys are then looking over their shoulder, they have to raise their game. I want them to do exactly what I did in my career and in the youth team.”