Football
Richard Jolly, ESPN.com writer 9y

Ryan Giggs: Man United youngsters must seize U.S. preseason tour chance

Ryan Giggs has told Manchester United's youngsters that they have the chance to play their way into Louis van Gaal's plans on the preseason tour of the United States.

United return to training on Monday before crossing the Atlantic to face Club America on July 18 in the first of their four warm-up matches.

Manager Van Gaal gave Tyler Blackett and Jesse Lingard Premier League debuts in the opening match of last season after both impressed him during United's preseason fixtures.

And the Dutchman later chose other inexperienced players such as Paddy McNair, leading his assistant Giggs to insist there is a chance for other outsiders to progress to the starting XI if they take their chances.

"Young players might come on tour thinking they'll not get many minutes but then suddenly there'll be an injury to a senior player," Giggs told United's official website.

"The young player might then have a 10 or 15-minute cameo, play really well, get into the team for the next game and do really well again. So the tour is definitely an important stage for the young players to make their mark.

"I think you've seen a lot of players play well in preseason and take that into the first part of the season. It's a massive thing as an individual to get the best out of yourself.

"If you can get off to a good start it gives you confidence so you definitely can't take the preseason games lightly. Gone are the days when you'd play easy games -- every match is tough and every stadium is sold out so you want to do well for the fans that have come to watch you."

United will definitely be without the injured Javier "Chicharito" Hernandez for their visit to the U.S. while Angel Di Maria and Marcos Rojo -- who are still involved in the Copa America with Argentina -- will not feature either.

In addition, Antonio Valencia had ankle surgery in the summer and United are yet to announce if he will be fit to tour. Meanwhile, Van Gaal has only made one summer signing so far -- Memphis Depay -- so there could be places in the squad to face San Jose Earthquakes, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.

"The tour is always a crucial part of preseason," added Giggs. "It's a time for new players to get to know their teammates, and the coaches can spend quality time with the team and work on certain things going into the season.

"It's not always the case that if you have a good preseason [as a team] you're going to go on and have a great season, but the main thing about preseason is to get through it with fit players, players playing enough games and no injuries. That's the main objective."

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