13-time Premier League winner poised to take manager job at League Two club
With Salford City head coach Neil Wood under pressure, Ammies co-owner Ryan Giggs is preparing himself to return to management
Following their high-profile rise through the non-league ranks, Salford City have seen their progress stall since entering League Two in 2019.
Funded by the Class of 92 and Singaporean businessman Peter Lim, the Ammies had their best chance yet to be promoted to League One in the 2022-23 season when they reached the fourth tier play-offs for the very first time.
They lost out to Greater Manchester rivals Stockport County though over two legs, with a penalty shootout being the difference at Edgeley Park between the two clubs.
That was Neil Wood’s first season in charge after replacing Gary Bowyer, but despite making it through to round three of the EFL Cup, things aren’t going so well in league action despite making some eye-catching summer additions.
After eight League Two matches, Salford sit in 20th position with just seven points to their name, having lost four matches in a row with the latest coming on home soil on Friday night to Notts County.
And according to The Sun, the Salford ownership are considering making a change in the dugout, with Wood departing and Ryan Giggs coming in in his place.
Giggs is of course one of the co-owners of City along with five of his fellow former Man United players and Lim, but he hasn’t been in management since leaving the Wales national team last year.
The 13-time Premier League winner as a player though is said to be keen on jumping back into management and he would accept taking the reins at the club he has a stake in, should things continue to go wrong.
What is Neil Wood’s situation at Salford City?
Wood has now been at Salford for over a year after being plucked from Man United, where he was the Red Devils’ under-23 coach.
It was never specified how long of a contract Wood signed with City, but Transfermarkt believes that his deal runs out next summer, meaning that he would have penned a two-year agreement at the Peninsula Stadium.
The 40-year-old is under ever increasing pressure though to save his job from the hierarchy at the club despite being the unanimous choice over a year ago, with the likes of Nicky Butt having worked with him at United.
Would Ryan Giggs be a good appointment for Salford City?
With Giggs’ lack of experience in club football management, you’d have to be concerned that he would be the right fit for Salford.
Yes, he managed Wales for a number of years but international football is a lot different to the rigours of club competition, and there’s also the added caveat that Giggs also part-owns the club too.
It could be said that it would be a positive considering it would probably be easier to step back and give someone else a go if it goes wrong, but an owner/manager of a club is a rare occurrence and whilst it wouldn’t be a shock to see it happen here, it’s still a significant risk.
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