Manchester United: Ryan Giggs hits back at Zlatan Ibrahimovic over Class of '92’s Paul Pogba criticism
Ryan Giggs has hit back at Zlatan Ibrahimovic over the former Manchester United striker’s criticism of the Class of 92, claiming players with “over 2,000 games between us” are entitled to have an opinion on the club’s operation.
Ibrahimovic, now playing for LA Galaxy in Major League Soccer, claimed that the likes of Gary Neville and Paul Scholes’ loyalty to Sir Alex Ferguson had incited unfair criticism against Paul Pogba.
The 37-year-old striker, speaking in an interview with the Mirror, said he believes there has been an undercurrent of criticism towards the French World Cup-winner ever since he left United’s academy for Juventus in 2012.
“Only Nicky [Butt] is connected with the club now but when you play over 2,000 games between us, we are going to have an opinion,” Giggs, who holds an all-time record 963 appearances for United, said in response.
“Sometimes it’s positive, sometimes negative, but it doesn’t have an effect on results.
“We are supporters. That’s what football is about, having different opinions.
“But he [Ibrahimovic] obviously knows more about the club than us.”
Giggs also deflected talk of a comparison between United’s 1999 treble-winning side and Pep Guardiola’s quadruple-chasing Manchester City.
“I’ve got enough to worry about, please don’t bring that up.” Giggs said. “They’re a fantastic team, aren’t they?
“They’ve already got one and United going out of the FA Cup makes it a little bit easier for them.
“They’ve got a long way to go but just like us in the treble, you need a lot of things to go for you. That bit of luck, which they had at the weekend.
“But they are a brilliant team. It will be interesting to see what they can achieve.”
