Man Utd name Ryan Giggs as Interim Manager

Veteran midfielder Ryan Giggs was on Tuesday appointed interim manager of Manchester United, shortly after the club announced the sacking of David Moyes.

"Following the departure of David Moyes as manager, Manchester United has announced that Ryan Giggs, the club's most decorated player, will assume responsibility for the first team until a permanent appointment can be made," read a statement on the United website.

"The club will make no further comment on this process until it is concluded."

Giggs, 40, made his United debut in March 1991 and has made a record 962 appearances for the club, winning 13 Premier League titles, two Champions Leagues, four FA Cups, four League Cups and one FIFA Club World Cup.

He has no previous managerial experience, but has combined his role as a player with a position on United's coaching staff since the start of the current campaign.

The Welshman, Britain's most decorated player, was informed of the news after arriving at United's Carrington training ground on Tuesday morning.

His first game at the helm will be a home fixture against Norwich City in the Premier League on Saturday, which will be followed by matches against Sunderland, Hull City and Southampton.

Louis van Gaal, the current Netherlands coach, has been installed as the favourite to succeed Moyes on a permanent basis by British bookmakers.

However, Jurgen Klopp of Borussia Dortmund, another rumoured contender, has already ruled himself out of the running.

DISAPPOINTING SEASON

David Moyes, who has only been in charge of Manchester United since July, paid the price for a hugely disappointing season on Tuesday when it was announced that he has left the club.

The 50-year-old Scot was appointed on the personal recommendation of Alex Ferguson who retired at the end of last season after 26 years in the job having steered United to the title for the 13th time in his reign and 20th time overall.

Moyes, who had been manager of Everton for 11 seasons but never won a major trophy, was given a six-year contract but the Old Trafford club have lurched from one crisis to another.

A 2-0 defeat at Everton on Sunday was the final straw for the club's owners, the Glazer family, as seventh-placed United have failed to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 1995-96.  

Current player-coach Ryan Giggs and his former United team-mate Nicky Butt are reportedly set to be placed in caretaker charge for Saturday's home game with Norwich City.

Louis van Gaal, the current Netherlands coach, has been installed as the favourite to succeed Moyes on a permanent basis by British bookmakers, with Jurgen Klopp of Borussia Dortmund another rumoured contender.

Earlier report

Manchester United are set to sack manager David Moyes less than a year after he took charge of the club, British media reported on Monday.

Moyes was appointed last May when Alex Ferguson retired after guiding the club to their 13th Premier League title under his management.

United are languishing in seventh place in the Premier League and face an expensive rebuilding job in the close season.

Several British newspapers reported online that Moyes had lost the support of the American Glazer family who own the club.

A poor performance in a 2-0 defeat away at Moyes' former club Everton on Sunday was seen as the final straw.

The Daily Telegraph said Moyes could be out before Saturday's home game with Norwich City if he seeks assurances over his future which executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward would be unlikely to be able to provide.

A United spokesman declined to comment on the reports.

Moyes had urged his players to restore the club's battered pride by winning their four remaining matches this season.

Speculation about Moyes's future intensified on Sunday following a 2-0 loss at Everton - the Scot's former club - which condemned reigning champions United to their 11th defeat of the season and meant they could not qualify for the Champions League.

Moyes was the chosen successor of former Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson - British football's most successful manager - following his retirement at the end of last season.

But that hasn't stopped him enduring a torrid first season at Old Trafford and United will only secure a place in next term's Europa League, European football's second-tier competition, if they overhaul a six-point gap between themselves and Tottenham.

Whether wins in their final four matches against Norwich, Sunderland, Hull and Southampton - will be enough to stem the doubts of some United fans remains to be seen.

However, defeats against a quartet of clubs United would once have been expected to beat comfortably will do little for Moyes's peace of mind.

"We need to end the season on a high," Moyes told MUTV, United's in-house television station, on Monday.

"We want to finish by winning all of our games. We'll do everything we possibly can to make that happen."

Meanwhile Moyes received backing from Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard, who said the home fans at Goodison had been wrong to boo the club's former boss and when he emerged from the tunnel on Sunday and jeer him throughout the game.

"We have brilliant fans, but that was unfair on him," Howard said of Moyes, who spent 11 years as Everton manager.

"He was the second coming, the messiah 12 months ago, and I don't think as Evertonians we should ever forget that.

"I love David Moyes. I think he is a brilliant manager," said the American, who spent four years at United.

"He was (a brilliant manager) here for us and I will be forever grateful to him."

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