Former Manchester United captain Bryan Robson has claimed that Ryan Giggs is ready to take on the manager's job should Louis van Gaal get sacked.

The Welshman was appointed as assistant coach when Van Gaal replaced David Moyes as manager in the summer of 2014.

It has been widely reported that former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho will take over should Van Gaal get sacked at the end of the season, but Robson believes that Giggs is more than capable.

"The thing for me is that Van Gaal was always going to be a three-year contract with Ryan working under him so that they could see whether he was ready to step in," Robson told Reuters. "Ryan was a great player for this club, he loves playing football the United way, he's done all his badges and for me he's in the right place at the right time.

"People say it's too big a challenge, too big a jump, but I don't agree. Look at Pep Guardiola, he came through the ranks at Barcelona as a player and then as a young coach and then they trusted him and he stepped up. He was tremendously successful.

"It's the same with Ryan. He knows what this club is all about and the fans would be totally behind the club if they made that decision and totally behind Ryan."

Giggs spent 24 years of his senior career playing for United.