Double chance keeps Giggs focused
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Article summary
Ryan Giggs reminded his Manchester United FC team-mates that "our season isn't over" after defeat at San Siro ended their UEFA Champions League dream.
Article body
Manchester United FC midfielder Ryan Giggs called on his side to put the disappointment of losing their UEFA Champions League semi-final against AC Milan behind them as they continue their quest for silverware.
'Look forward'
United lost 3-0 at San Siro as goals from Kaká, Clarence Seedorf and Alberto Gilardino saw them crash out 5-3 on aggregate, but Giggs knows the Premiership leaders still have plenty to play for. United play rivals Manchester City FC on Saturday and will be crowned champions should they win and Chelsea FC fail to beat Arsenal FC the following day. They then face Chelsea in the FA Cup final. "We're in a good position, our season isn't over," Giggs said. "That's what we've got to tell ourselves now. We've got to look forward to Saturday, a big game, and get ourselves up for that."
Bad start
While Milan contemplate a second final against Liverpool FC in three seasons, United were left to reflect on a missed opportunity. "Disappointing obviously," Giggs said. "We just didn't perform on the night and Milan deserved to go through. When you come away in Europe you need to silence the crowd and we didn't do that. We didn't start well and we didn't recover from that. I think we were well matched - I think we showed that in the first game - but we just didn't perform for whatever reason. In both ties we allowed bad goals and you can't do that against a class team like Milan. We still feel we were good enough to go through but tonight we just didn't perform."
Optimism
Belief was high in the United ranks after their superb 7-1 demolition of AS Roma in the quarter-finals and another strong display at Old Trafford against Milan last week. With Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo leading the new generation, Giggs believes United fans have much to look forward to. "There's massive potential throughout the team and we've shown that this season on a consistent basis. We've now got to finish off the season on a high hopefully and do well in the league and the cup." As for the UEFA Champions League final, Giggs believes it's too close to call. "Two good teams with a lot of experience in the Champions League. They met a couple of years ago so they know each other. It's anyone's, whoever performs on the night."
