Quote Originally Posted by qccfc View Post
I felt Giggs laid down a marker, for the rest of the squad, these matches then felt worthless, and that feeling flowed into all the other players and eventually the fans.

Giggs didn't play a friendly for 9 years. No friendlies are pointless, you improve your FIFA ranking you get put in better pots for International tournaments, you make qualification a bit easier.

Recently we haven't played that many friendlies, which i believe is sensible, but when we have, the spirit and the commitment of the squad cannot be questioned.

If you look at Ronaldo (147 caps) and Messi (123 caps) it shows that you can play international football and compete at the very highest level.
Things have changed since his playing time and im sure i read fairly recently that playing the wrong type of friendlies these days worsens your rankings,which is why we had the trainging camps instead. I personally think he would have been available for most of these camps if they were done then as he wouldhave been in a contained enviroment that would have suited Man U and Fergie better.
Remember we didnt have a pot to pissin as an association in those days so someone like Giggs getting injured on international duty was probably something the FAW feared so didnt try to force the issue with the club.