Man United Veteran Giggs Slams Overpaid Youngsters

Posted Monday, September 06, 2010 by Goal.com

Manchester United veteran Ryan Giggs has blasted the inflated pay-packets that youngsters in football receive and claims it doesn't help in the development of their careers.

The 36-year-old veteran is still going strong at the top end of the Premier League and hopes for continued success, despite a 23-medal haul through his glittering career at Old Trafford.

But Giggs has warned a lot of young footballers may never achieve what he achieved in the game because they are simply too pampered before they have proven themselves.

"A lot of players now, before they've established themselves, get a lot of money, which I never got," Giggs told the Daily Star.

"I was on good money, don't get me wrong, but I was playing in the first team and I was on £30. I was on an apprenticeship wage.

"Then my next contract was like £200 with expenses and gradually contracts would get better the older you got. That was how I grew up.

"Now, before you're proven, you've got the money - a four or five-year contract - which is the way football's gone.

"Some players can handle it, some players don't. I've been at the club during its most successful era and been here a long time. It's going to be hard to beat.

"I'm not going to say it will never ever be done, but it will be tough."