Born in Cardiff, his family moved to Manchester when he was six, where he signed for Manchester City’s School of Excellence before joining Manchester United on his 14th birthday. From there, he never looked back, making his professional debut for the club in 1991, going on to spend the next 23 years in their first team, making 963 appearances for them (a club record) and scoring 168 goals.

During his record-breaking time at Manchester United, Ryan won 34 winners medals, including: 13 Premier Leagues; 4 FA Cups; and 2 UEFA Champions Leagues. He was also named PFA Player of the Year in 2009 and Sports Personality of the Year in the same year.

Between 1991 and 2007, Ryan also made 64 appearances for Wales, scoring 12 times.

After retiring from professional football in 2014, Ryan was named Interim Manager of Manchester United before becoming Assistant Manager. In 2018, he became Wales Manager, replacing Chris Coleman.

In his first game in charge of Wales, the team beat China 6-0 in the 2018 China Cup. Since then, they have played a number of friendlies as well as winning 2, losing 2 in The UEFA Nations League, including a memorable 4-1 victory over Ireland.

In his time as manager, he has spoken of his desire to blood youngsters and the importance of building a squad which has strength in depth.

Ryan is currently spearheading Wales’ campaign for qualification to the 2020 European Championships.