Giggs has faith in squad

Ryan Giggs is confident the Manchester United squad is strong enough to navigate a period of fixture congestion that follows the imminent international break.

The Reds are scheduled to face Sunderland in the Barclays Premier League on Saturday 30 March before contesting an FA Cup sixth-round replay with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Easter Monday with the kick-off times less than 48 hours apart.

It is a daunting task, particularly as many of Sir Alex Ferguson’s players will have travelled the world to represent their individual countries beforehand, but Giggs feels sure his team-mates are more than capable of handling the situation – even if it isn’t ideal.

“It is a strange situation; I think they were just trying to fit the Chelsea replay in,” Giggs told MUTV. "Obviously, with them still in the Europa League it was tough to find a place for the fixture and Easter Monday was the only time. It seems strange to play twice in 48 hours - we haven’t done that for a bit.

“But saying that, the squad is looking good at the moment and hopefully we will have a fully fit group after the international break that will be able to handle the two games.

“It is two important games in such a short space of time – Sunderland away is always going to be a tough one and obviously Chelsea will be too – but hopefully we’ve got a squad that can handle it.”

Of course, Saturday’s meeting with Reading at Old Trafford falls before any of the aforementioned fixtures and could see Giggs play for the first time since featuring in his 1,000th career match during United’s high-profile defeat to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League.

And although Ryan is proud of his achievement, the Welsh legend admits he has not taken any time to reflect on the milestone and is instead focused on ensuring the Reds get over any European hangover by finishing this campaign strongly.

“There was a bit of disappointment immediately after the Real Madrid match but then we were looking forward to Chelsea, so I haven’t thought about it,” he explains. “I was obviously proud [of my 1,000th match] and would’ve liked better circumstances to celebrate it, but I just get on with it and hope for a good end to the season.

“I think as you enter your thirties you are just trying to play for as long as possible and to get as much out of the game as you can. Luckily, I’ve managed to stay injury free and I’ve had the continuity of the manager being here. So many things have gone for me and I’ve looked after myself, but nobody ever envisages getting to 1,000 games.”