Manchester United news: Ryan Giggs speaks out against David Moyes' recruitment policy during United tenure
Moyes lasted just 10 months in charge at Old Trafford after being sacked in April 2014
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Your support makes all the difference.Manchester United icon Ryan Giggs has suggested that former manager David Moyes struggled to implement a successful recruitment policy on arrival at Old Trafford.
The 42-year-old added that Moyes lacked the necessary “inside knowledge” but stated that the Scotsman could not be ‘blamed’.
The former Everton boss took over at the club in July 2013 following Sir Alex Ferguson’s retirement from the game.
After comfortably winning the league during Ferguson’s final season in charge, United slumped to seventh in his absence.
Giggs, who was a player-coach under Moyes, said: “I don’t believe that the decline, post-Sir Alex was inevitable.
“Yes, the likes of myself, Rio, Nemanja Vidic, even Patrice Evra were coming to the end of our careers… But with the right recruitment we would have been gently phased out and replaced by young, hungry players with United’s winning mentality.
“Instead, the recruitment in that first summer under David Moyes didn't go to plan. I don’t blame David. He came in without any of the inside knowledge about how the squad worked: when certain players needed resting, who was right for which game, who needed to be moved on and who needed to be encouraged.”
Writing in his Telegraph column, Giggs also stated that Moyes had signed Marouane Fellaini as a last-minute “panic” buy.
Fellaini was United’s only major signing of the summer transfer window. He joined the club on deadline day for £27.5m in a move that was largely ridiculed at the time.
“Signing Marouane Fellaini so close to the deadline that August, the club’s only major deal in a summer when we needed two or three big names, suggested that things were not running smoothly.
“United had signed players late in the window before – Dimitar Berbatov in 2008 springs to mind – but this time was different. This time it was more of a panic.”
Giggs added: "Sir Alex might not necessarily have had a first-choice XI but he knew exactly what side was needed for each game, and would have that planned weeks ahead. David did not have that information. He started with a blank sheet of paper and for most of the first season we were chasing our best XI, or the right team for the game in question.”
Moyes lasted a total of 10 months at Old Trafford and was eventually sacked in April 2014, with Giggs taking over for the final four games of the season.
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