Life of Ryan: Caretaker Manager Page #3

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and thrilled to do.

It's obviously been a crazy clay,

and I've not really probably sat...

Had time to sit down and think about it,

and maybe it will hit me later in the week

or maybe it'll hit me

when I get into the press conference

or at Old Trafford for the game.

I don't know, but I'm obviously excited.

It's just a mixture of different feelings,

and you're outside your comfort zone

and it's...

It's a strange experience.

I might not enjoy it,

might not get the right results,

I might not be the right man,

I might not be ready.

All them things are just

up in the air at the moment,

and we'll soon find out a lot of the answers

to them questions.

I don't need to be set expectations

because I've got my own expectations.

Four games for Man United,

three at home, I expect to win them.

You wanted someone from the class of '92,

someone who understood the DNA,

the culture, the heartbeat of the club,

to step back in there

and to remind the world

and to remind the fans

and the players

what Manchester United is all about.

It's about width, it's about fearless attacking,

it's about attack, attack, attack,

at the Stretford end,

and all those qualities

that Ryan Giggs embodied,

so I thought he was a perfect choice.

He's obviously not managed a team before,

but he knows Manchester United

better than anyone that's there.

He loves Man United probably more

than anyone that's there.

He's got the respect from

the professionals that

he's played with over the years.

He's got that ruthless streak

that I think managers,

good managers, really need.

I think he has exactly what it takes

to be successful in management.

Getting the coaching role really quick

is something that

maybe you are not prepared for,

but I think he's got the special mentality.

He's been in there,

he knows Man United more than

any other player in the last 30 years.

It's always difficult to take that step.

PHIL:
I've only ever known Ryan

as a player and as a friend,

so the day he got the job on obviously

a part-time basis it was, uh...

You obviously didn't know what to expect.

Is he good enough?

Has he got the temperament?

Has he got the tactical knowledge? Et cetera.

Well, Ryan's handled

playing on the big stage,

he's handled everything that's

thrown at him over the last 20 years,

so why can't he handle being a manager?

It might be fantasy, but I think this club

is built on a little bit of fantasy.

The players are giving me a bit of stick

about, "Where are you going to park?"

No point messing about, is there?

Just get in the manager spot.

SCHOLES'. He's well-trained for it.

He's done his A license,

he's doing his Pro license.

He's a very level-headed person

and nothing seems to phase him.

I've not seen him ever come unstuck

or been phased by pressure.

He's always on that same level.

He always handles things really well,

he takes things in his stride.

I think that is his greatest quality, Ryan,

that he never changes

whatever the situation is.

RYAN:
I took the manager's job

without hesitation because

I knew what good players

we had in the dressing room,

and it was obviously a great chance for me.

It was four games,

and there was nothing to lose

and who turns the chance of

managing Manchester United down?

FERGUSON:
The great players

have a part to play,

quite rightly they should be part

of the future of the club,

and that delights me more than anything

and we've prepared them for that.

We told them, "You've got to

get your coaching badges.

"You've got to get through all that procedure

"and prepare yourself for the biggest

challenge of your life, being a coach."

(INAUDIBLE)

RYAN'. From 8:
30 till 10:30 it was crazy,

and I was thinking, "What have I done?"

Putting pressure on yourself.

I then spoke to the players

to tell them what's happening.

(RYAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)

He's just got a presence,

you know, within a room.

I don't know how you get that.

I mean, Sir Alex had it in a huge way,

Giggsy's got it.

Maybe it comes through greatness.

Maybe that's just how you get it,

and he's certainly got that.

RYAN:
After I addressed the players,

my instant thoughts were

I was inheriting a team that were

full of stars and full of quality.

I've gotta try and prepare training.

Of course I wanted as much help

as I could get,

so Phil and Nicky were already here,

so I'd spoke to them

and, yeah, obviously

I respect Scholesy as a player

and as a person and I respect his view.

I wanted to get him in as quickly as possible.

SCHOLES:
I'd sent him a message before

when I already heard about it,

just wishing him good luck,

and five or ten minutes later

he gave me a call to see

if I'd be interested in coming

to training for a couple of weeks.

I thought it was great when the class of '92

started getting back together.

I thought it was brilliant.

It was like one of the great bands reforming.

You want to see them

go back on the road again.

It was quite a staff team

they would have had there.

I think it was just a reminder

that Manchester United

had to go back to its roots and

go back to the dressing room greats

to take them forward from

such a difficult period under David Moyes.

Coming out and seeing Scholesy, Butty, Nev

and Giggsy on the first day was...

It was a pretty special sight, really.

RYAN:
The emphasis was on possession,

quick play,

one and two touch,

get the sharpness in the legs,

also a bit of fun.

It was just a keep ball,

and no-one was giving the ball away.

The ball didn't go out of play,

and it was just brilliant to watch.

I sat next to Butty and I went, "Butty, what

were we worried about? Have you seen this?"

The quality of training

was absolutely brilliant.

Short games, lots of goals, lots of shots

and, yeah, the keepers weren't thanking me

because some of the shots

that were going in I think even Rio scored.

(ALL CHEERING)

PHIL:
You know, I keep hearing,

"Ryan's not got much experience. The

coaching staff's not got much experience,"

but in terms of Man United experience,

I think that's important. I think

you got to know the fabric of the club.

And we've probably got

over 100 years' experience of being involved

at this football club, so it's

not as if we're all just best mates

having a laugh.

We're all serious about our job.

There's nobody more serious than Ryan.

RIO FERDINAND:
This is hard for a man.

He's just been in there as a teammate

having a laugh with the lads,

joking and stuff, messing around,

and has to really cut off from the rest of us

now and become a manager so quick,

and then he's got to pick a team

and disappoint people

that he's been teammates with.

This period here will tell him whether he sees

a future in management for himself.

Did he like it? Did he enjoy it?

Did he feel he was good enough for it?

Did it whet his appetite?

What I do and what I have done

is play football.

That just comes naturally. This is not...

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