Ryan Giggs insists he is still learning as the Wales head coach

Wales manager Ryan Giggs has said that he is still learning the art of management despite coaching the nation for the past 16 months. The Manchester United legend has not enjoyed the best of fortunes since taking over the Wales job, but he remains optimistic that he can learn from the mistakes and become a better head coach.

Speaking to BBC Sport, Giggs said that he is still learning through the head coach role and has yet to find the right balance for the team, he told the publication: “I am learning. I'm still a relatively young coach. When there is such a short turnaround you have to decide whether you should pick players who should definitely be in the team or the ones who are playing. It's a definite factor for us that, for players who aren't playing regularly, two games in three days is very difficult - especially against top opposition. I'm still juggling with getting that balance right and you're not always going to be able to do that.”

Wales suffered back-to-back defeats to Croatia and Hungary during the recent round of internationals and that has delivered a potential blow to the prospects of qualifying for the European Championship next year. Nonetheless, they could turn things around during the final five games in the group and one of those is scheduled against Azerbaijan at home at the beginning of September.

Under the guidance of Giggs, a number of young prospects including Daniel James and David Brooks have made the breakthrough to the national team and it remains to be seen whether they can produce the same level of performance as displayed at the club level. James has been hitting the headlines of late after making the move to Manchester United from Championship side Swansea City for around £15m.