15-year-old Zach Giggs made his bow for Manchester United Under-18 against Wolverhampton Wanderers in front of senior manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on Saturday afternoon
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Zach Giggs, the son of Old Trafford legend Ryan, made his Manchester United Under-18 debut in front of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on Saturday afternoon.
The 15-year-old came off the bench in an U18 Premier League Cup game against Wolverhampton Wanderers, helping his side to a 4-2 victory.
Giggs is a natural centre-back who can also play in either full-back role and his rise through United’s academy ranks has earned him call-ups for Wales at U16 level.
His father won 64 caps for the Dragons and spent his entire playing career with the Red Devils, winning 22 major honours and making 963 appearances for the club.
The teenager has a long way to go to match those achievements, but he is already making a name for himself at the club’s Carrington base.
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The latest landmark of his development came as U18 manager Travis Binnion brought Giggs, who was born in 2006, off the bench deep into added time against Wolves.
United won the fixture thanks to goals from Rhys Bennett, Isak Hansen-Aaroen, Charlie McNeill and Maxi Oyedele.
Senior boss Solskjaer has a testing Premier League clash with Liverpool on Sunday evening to prepare for, but made time to attend the U18 fixture and was pictured on MUTV watching from the touchline.
Zach joined United’s academy ranks many years ago, while his father retired from playing in 2014 and subsequently served as interim manager then assistant to Louis van Gaal.
He was not kept on upon Jose Mourinho’s appointment in 2016 but continued to make frequent trips to the club’s Carrington base due to his son.
“I’m actually there every Tuesday and Thursday because my son trains there. I am there quite a bit at night,” said Giggs in 2019.
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“Nicky [Butt, then-academy coach] is there and I sometimes go in for a coffee with Nick. I am there quite a bit.”
Giggs junior will hope his U18 debut will herald more opportunities to impress Solskjaer and other academy staff in coming months.
The Norwegian – now in his third full season as manager – has made a point of trusting the club’s youngsters and handing out minutes to blossoming talents throughout his tenure.
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Solskjaer was especially pleased to see academies reopen last year following mass closures due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“The whole of the Academies in the country must be excited because we lost so many months of valuable time for kids to play,” Solskjaer told United’s official website. “So I’m happy we’re back.
“I think it’s been looking good and there are some interesting and exciting prospects there.”
