Ryan Giggs has warned his younger team-mates that they cannot afford to take their eye off the ball in Wednesday’s Premier League clash with Newcastle.
With a seven-point lead over Chelsea and Liverpool going into a full midweek programme of league matches, United are regarded as overwhelming favourites to go on to clinch a third consecutive league title.
For Giggs, an 11th Premier League winners’ medal beckons and his continuing value to Sir Alex Ferguson’s side was underlined when he hammered in a nerveless first penalty in the shoot-out that decided Sunday’s League Cup final against Tottenham.
In the run-up to the trip to Newcastle, he has been bringing his experience to bear by warning the younger heads around him of the dangers of complacency.
“We have lost leads before and also won titles when we have come from behind,” the 35-year-old said. “It is going to be hard because we have so many tough games coming up.
“If this club loses one game it is a disaster so we just have to maintain our current momentum.”
In 18 years at United, Giggs has become the most decorated player in English football history. Sunday’s winners medal was his 29th and, with United also gunning for glory in the FA Cup and Champions League, the haul could be significantly higher by the end of the season.
“It doesn’t feel like 18 years,” he admitted. “The time has gone quickly and I have been fortunate to play with so many great players and in so many great teams.
“But I don’t really look back, I will have plenty of time to do that when I have finished. For now I just look forward.”
The Newcastle game is the first of three that could make-or-break United’s bid for a five-trophy haul this season.
On Saturday, Ferguson takes his side to Fulham for an FA Cup quarter-final tie and, four days later, Inter Milan are due at Old Trafford in the Champions League.
Progress is not a foregone conclusion in either tournament but Giggs believes this season is turning out much like 1998-99, when United won the league, FA Cup and, on an unforgettable night in Barcelona, the Champions League.
“The momentum was with us in the treble year,” the Welshman recalled. “We played well and had a lot of luck and kept winning. And when you are winning you can’t wait for the next game.
“That is the way at the moment. We are hungry and want to improve as individuals, get better as a team and win every competition we enter.”
