Giggs: I want to be Wales manager

'I think if you've played for your country and want to go into coaching or management, that has got to be the ultimate job to do,' says Giggs (GETTY IMAGES)

Ryan Giggs would like to manage Wales at some future date if, as expected, he pursues a career in coaching after finally retiring from Manchester United. In an interview with The Independent on Sunday, he said the great disappointment of his glittering career is missing out on appearing at a major tournament for his country.

"The build-up gets you excited as a fan; I can only imagine what it's like as a player and I'll never experience that," he said. Giggs, 35, who had previously captained England Schoolboys because he was at a Manchester school, played 64 times for Wales before retiring from international football in 2007.

Now he wants to put something back. "I think if you've played for your country and want to go into coaching or management, that has got to be the ultimate job to do," he said. "We should be making sure long-term that Wales get to a major championship. That would have a massive effect on kids coming through. If they're torn whether to choose rugby or football, which is a big issue in Wales, and they watch a European Championship or World Cup with their national team in, they might just concentrate on football."

Yesterday, Giggs was absent with a hamstring injury as United, drawn at home to Spurs in the Carling Cup quarter-finals, beat Blackburn 2-0, Dimitar Berbatov and Wayne Rooney scoring.