Man Utd legend’s son signs for Premier League rivals

Robin Bairner

• 18 May 2023 07:49 BST
• 3 min read

The son of Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs has left the Old Trafford club to sign a youth contract at new Premier League rivals Sheffield United.

Zach Giggs, who is a 16-year-old left-back, had been on the books of the Old Trafford club for the last four years, but he has departed the team at which his dad, who was a one-club man, made 963 appearances in a career spanning from 1990 until 2014.

Giggs Jnr will join the Blades, who won promotion to the Premier League via a second-place finish behind Vincent Kompany’s Burnley in the Championship, on a youth contract.

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Why is Zach Giggs leaving Man Utd?

It is thought that he has opted to leave the Red Devils in order to maximise his chances of first-team football – something that would have been trickier at Man Utd, despite manager Erik ten Hag having a reputation for trusting youth players.

Nevertheless, his decision to step away from the Old Trafford side means that he is unlikely to follow in his father’s footsteps of playing for the storied club.

Sheffield United brand themselves as having the ‘Academy of Opportunity’ and have developed a number of leading Premier League players.

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Among those to have come through the ranks of the Bramall Lane club are Phil Jakgielka, Kyle Walker and Dominic Calvert-Lewin, all of whom have played for England occasions. But Harry Maguire was another to come through the academy at Sheffield United before his career led him to Hull, Leicester and ultimately Man Utd, where Giggs will have been able to keep an eye on him from afar.

The Blades have come through a tricky season off the field, with a transfer ban on the club for non-payment of outstanding deals lifted thanks to their promotion to the Premier League. And that has allowed them to sign Giggs.