Gary Speed confirms Ryan Giggs Wales talks
Ryan Giggs quit international football in June 2007 after 64 Wales caps
Gary Speed has revealed he has held talks with Ryan Giggs about the Wales great joining his new set-up.
The Manchester United winger retired from international football in 2007 but new Wales boss Speed has hinted he would like Giggs in his coaching team.
"It would be great to get him involved in some respect," Speed told BBC Sport. "I spoke to him last week and we'll have to wait and see."
Speed has made finalising his backroom team his top priority.
The 41-old-old, who succeeded John Toshack as coach of the national side, wants his management team to be a "mixture of an experienced and younger coach."
Gary Speed was replaced as Wales captain by Ryan Giggs in 2004
John Carver, the former Newcastle United and Leeds United assistant, was Speed's right-hand-man during the former Wales captain's four-month reign in his first managerial job as Sheffield United.
Carver is now caretaker manager at Bramall Lane since Speed quit Championship club United but he could follow Speed to the Football Association of Wales.
Osian Roberts, the Welsh Football Trust's technical director, has also been linked with a position as Speed's number two while Wales youth guru Brian Flynn, who Speed beat to the Wales top job, has also been suggested as an ideal assistant for Speed.
Now Speed has hinted fellow former Wales captain Giggs, his long-time former international team-mate, could be considered in his Welsh backroom team even though both are inexperienced coaches.
"I want to bring the best people in for the sake of Welsh football," Speed said.
"I want a good coach to do the day-to-day coaching sessions on the training pitch whereas I do more team shape.
"Then I would like an experienced man behind me who has had experience at maybe Premier League and international football because I'm relatively young."
Speed admits he "has some work to do" before Christmas on creating his management team before finalising appointments in the new year before his first Wales game against Republic of Ireland in the Carling Cup opener on 8 February.
Giggs, who replaced Speed as Wales skipper in 2004, is Wales' most famous footballer and the 37-year-old is Manchester United's most decorated player, including two Champions League wins and a record 11 Premier League crowns.
He quit Wales in June 2007 after his 64th international cap to help elongate his club career and the one-club man has a contract at Old Trafford until the summer.
Giggs, who is halfway through his Uefa 'A' Licence qualifications, ruled himself out of replacing Toshack as Wales boss but Speed may be ready to ask Giggs if he wants to help him with Wales.
However Wales goalkeeping great Neville Southall believes former Swansea and Wrexham boss Flynn, an unsuccessful managerial candidate, would be "ideal" to due to his popularity among Wales' star players.
"He knows the set-up and helped developed most of their players," said Southall.
"Flynn would keep the continuity as he coaches the youth teams and the under-21s and he knows the players well."
Carver was Speed's first-team coach at United as the 45-year-old moved from Plymouth Argyle to reunite with the man he worked with at Newcastle United when Carver was assistant to Sir Bobby Robson.
And asked if Speed has asked Carver to follow him to Wales, Carver replied: "Absolutely not.
"I do have a personal friendship with Gary and we talk every day more or less.
"I'm always going to get linked with that job. In the past I have been offered jobs and turned them done. But I'll cross that bridge if I come to it."
Carver, however, notably once had off-the-field bust-ups with Wales captain Craig Bellamy during his tumultuous time at Newcastle.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Espritcharm bracelets