Perryman hails Giggs as another record set to go

TOLD his record for making the most appearances for one club in the top flight was about to go, Steve Perryman let out a chuckle.

“Really? I know about most of my records but not that one. Ah well, I suppose it is about time I got beaten by a winger.”

Now 59, Perryman requires no prompting to offer a more fulsome tribute to Ryan Giggs.

Although speculating on the identity of one of Alex Ferguson’s teams is fraught with danger, as a point is still required to clinch a record 19th league title, the chances are Giggs will make an appearance in one of Manchester United’s final two games of the season against Blackburn and Blackpool.

And when he does, the veteran Welshman will match the 613 top-flight league appearances Perryman made for Tottenham in the 1970s and early 80s, yet another milestone in Giggs’ remarkable career.

“If it was going to be anyone, I would want it to be Ryan Giggs,” reflected Perryman.

“If you were going to use anyone as an example of how to conduct yourself in terms of being a footballer, he would be it.

“More stuff is known now about exercise and the regimes you need to prolong your career.

“Even so, not everyone sticks by that. But with all the yoga and dietary stuff, he obviously lives in the right way. You have to give Ryan credit for that.”

There are other advantages for a modern-day professional too, thinks Perryman, not least the bowling-green type surfaces Premier League matches tend to be played on.

“These guys all play on top of the ground, rather than having to go through it, as I spent most of my career doing.

“That was tough. There are also have bigger squads now, so you have a lot of rotation. But I am sure Ryan has played plenty of games when his body has not felt right.”

And, unlike Perryman, who made an art form of blending in, selflessly doing his job in defence before letting the more cultured players strut their stuff, Giggs has operated right in the spotlight, the man United still turn to when things are not going so well.

“He clearly has the talent to match the desire and professionalism,” said Perryman. “He is the type of player who always gets the crowd on their edge of their seats.

“He is a danger to any opponent and looking at it from the outside, he must be a manager’s dream.”