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Football

29th Jun 2015

Pressure piled on Memphis Depay as Ryan Giggs compares his free kicks to that of Beckham and Ronaldo

High praise

Darragh Murphy

It’s been awhile since a player arrived on the Premier League scene with the hype that Memphis Depay has.

Fans of the Eredivisie will know only too well the capabilities of the former PSV winger but those who haven’t had the chance to see him play before will be eager to see if he can back up all the talk associated with him before his move to Manchester United.

And Red Devils legend Ryan Giggs has upped the expectations on the 21-year-old by suggesting that he can fill the gap left in terms of quality free kick takers at Old Trafford nowadays.

“One thing we probably have lacked since Cristiano – and Becks (David Beckham) before him – is free kicks,” Giggs told The Sunday Times. “And it looks like Depay has a great track record from free kicks as well.

“Over a season, if you can score more from free-kicks and corners it adds up and makes a real difference in winning games. So, no pressure… but hopefully he’ll score 10 free kicks every year!”

Giggs is well aware of the pressures of young players to perform for Manchester United, having signed his first professional contract at Old Trafford at 17 years old, but he’s backing Depay to flourish under such circumstances.

“Old Trafford is the right stage for a player like him, because if you try things that don’t come off the fans will stay behind you. You’re at a club where they want you to do things off the cuff, to entertain them.”

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