Quote Originally Posted by the other bob wilson View Post
I agree with everything you say, especially the bit about how people don’t want Keiffer Moore to play for Wales when there’s an international break.

I was really surprised by how widespread the vitriol aimed st Giggs was when he came on in that Manchester United game in 2013. It used to annoy me that he was never available to play in friendly games, but, if, as is generally accepted, Alex Ferguson was responsible for Giggs’ non availability, what do you think would have happened to Giggs if he had insisted on playing in those matches?
If Ferguson was responsible then it's one of a few things
1) Giggs was forced out of Wales teams, against his wishes, so was obviously intimidated by Ferguson
2) Giggs didn't fancy it, felt a home game against Liverpool/Everton/Palace/Southampton was more important. We disagree, as Welshmen, but he's made a free choice, albeit one where he has deceived people.

Back then, countries didn't have the right to demand a player showed up, so if Fergie said he was crocked, he was.

So, if Giggs told Fergie "I want to play in that friendly", Fergie would have had some options. Drop a player who was vital to Man U in those glory years and replace him with Kanchelskis or Lee Sharpe. Giggs may well have put in for a transfer at that stage - and would have had a world record transfer fee to maybe Internazionale or Real or Barca. Or Fergie would have had to bite the bullet and accept it.

Fergie was THE BOSS though, not just of Manchester United, but Wales, Northern Ireland, and many other small countries who lived in fear of a star player retiring from international duty. I'm sure Gould or Yorath or Hughes would have just thought "as long as he's here for the qualifier".

Problem was, unlike with Bale, we had the impression that Giggs didn't want to be there. He was our "star" player, and got the armband in later years, but his conviction to Wales was always left a little bit of an unanswered question.

Assuming Giggs wasn't in the problems he is in and assuming Wales were competing as well as they were, if Giggs was offered a job at, perhaps, Everton we know he would drop Wales without a second thought.