The Surprising Reason Why Ryan Giggs Threw A Drink At Sir Alex Ferguson
REUTERS/Andrew Winning
The modern era of Manchester United has been defined by Sir Alex Ferguson and his group of strong-willed and talented lads that ruled over the Premier League for nearly the entirety of the period that the Scotsman was at the helm.
Most prominent of these players has to be Ryan Giggs, who spent his entire career with the Red Devils, and was deployed effectively by Ferguson in a manner that has now cemented him as a legend. However, the rapport shared by the two wasn’t always fond, and one incident in particular, narrated by the now retired winger, is a great example of just that.
In an interview with Telegraph, Giggs revealed what happened when he lost his temper with the disciplinarian boss, and the consequences that followed.
The setting for the encounter was United’s Champions League clash with Juventus in 1996. The Italian side was a formidable force in Europe, and the match in question was proving to be frustrating due to the likes of Antonio Conte and Zinedine Zidane being lined up effectively by the Old Lady.
As a result of this, Giggs was finding it increasingly difficult to play in his natural style, particularly as Eric Cantona refused to indulge in a deeper role to aid the movement of the ball. This frustration was removed by the Welshman during the half-time, in an interesting fashion.
Speaking about the incident, the Welshman revealed: “It should be said that in the absence of any options, my attempts to dribble out of midfield that night were at the less successful end of the scale. My argument with Sir Alex ended with me throwing a drink which hit a kit skip and landed at the feet of my boss. I knew exactly what was going to happen.”
Anyone who knows Ferguson’s particularity towards discipline and cool-headedness could guess what came next.
Giggsy continued: “’McClair,’ Sir Alex said immediately, ‘you’re coming on’. Then he looked at me. ‘And you’re coming off.’ My first attempt to be a dressing room know-it-all had failed miserably. I was fined one week’s wages.”
We can be certain that Giggs never tried something of that sort again, which probably aided him into becoming the fine player that he did, and might even come into play again in his managerial aspirations.
Written by Naveen Kelvin 
A writer trying to craft the poetry within football. Purpose in life is to Make Good Art.