MANCHESTER, England - Ryan Giggs path to becoming the most durable and decorated player of the English Premier League era can be traced back almost 32 years, to the moment his precocious talents were spotted by a milkman on a muddy school pitch in north-west Manchester. Joe Klecko Womens Jersey . "He was just like a gazelle, flying up the wing," recalled Dennis Schofield, who happened to also be a scout at Manchester City. "I thought, Flipping heck, hes good this kid." Giggs was just 8 at the time, but his close control, pace and skills had Schofield salivating. "He is the most outstanding player Ive seen at that age, even now. Like Stanley Matthews," Schofield, now 82, told The Associated Press. Three decades on and the comparison with Matthews could not be more apt. Like the England great, who played top-level football until he was 50, Giggs longevity is going down in folklore. On Friday, the Manchester United midfielder turned 40. His hair is thinning and greying, his turn of pace isnt what it was, and he is used more sparingly by the English champions, where he is now also part of the coaching staff under manager David Moyes. But Giggs the player is showing no sign of decline. From central midfield, he was the driving force behind Uniteds devastating 5-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday in the Champions League, club footballs top and most intense competition. He played 90 minutes, too. And dont be surprised to see him featuring for United against Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday. That would be his 953rd club appearance, all coming for United since his debut in 1991. "I dont know what the younger lads think of me," Giggs said. "When I was 17 and 18, I thought 31 was ancient. Here I am, at 40." Teddy Sheringham, Kevin Phillips (who is still playing in the top flight for Crystal Palace) and Gordon Strachan are the only other outfield footballers to have played in the Premier League in their fifth decade. But none of the trio performed at the elite level throughout their careers as Giggs has done — and no one has come near his haul of titles and medals. The list keeps growing: 13 Premier Leagues, four FA Cups, three League Cups, two Champions Leagues, one UEFA Super Cup, an Intercontinental Cup and a Club World Cup. He is the only player to have scored a goal in every Premier League season, has the most appearances in the Champions League (148), and played 1,021 professional games for club and country. His solo goal in the FA Cup semifinal replay against Arsenal in 1999, where he set off from inside his own half, jinked round three defenders and slammed a shot into the roof of the net, has gone down as one of the greatest goals in English football. Giggs doesnt see himself quitting any time soon, either. Since turning 30, he has undertaken regular yoga sessions, which is an accepted method of keeping in shape even if, years ago, it earned funny looks in the macho world of football. He has also refined his game, playing deeper in midfield rather than on the wings. He relies on speed of thought rather than the speed of his legs, and he is way ahead of the rest. "Hes an unbelievable footballer," Moyes said, "and is even getting better." Tributes to Giggs poured in from across the country on Friday. Moyes said he "undoubtedly" the leagues best ever player and former teammate Mark Hughes — now manager at Stoke — said the success Giggs has had "wont be replicated by anyone." "Maybe he is like a good Bordeaux (wine)," Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger mused, "he gets better as he gets older." Schofield believes the natural fitness Giggs is blessed with means he could go on for another four of five years — and he has been right about the Welshman before. Schofield recalls his chance first encounter with Giggs as if it was yesterday. "I was on my milkfloat this day and all these kids came out of school," he said in a phone interview. "I said, Are you going playing? and they said, Yeah, just down the road. "So I parked my milkfloat up and went and watched them. They kicked off and this young lad, 8 years old, playing on the left wing. My, he had some pace on him, good control. Everything." Schofield spoke to Giggs mother, who was watching on the touchline, and invited the youngster to train with a local team, Deans. He spent years nurturing Giggs, taking him on tours to the Isle of Wight where, Schofield reminisces, "parents left their own teams, their own kids who were playing, to come across and watch Ryan play." Then came the moment Schofield has forever regretted. "I got him down to Man City and told the chief scout, When he is 14, youd better be down at his house because there will be quite a few clubs knocking on his door. He told me not to worry, that (Giggs) father has shaken hands on it and will sign for us. "Well, on that morning he was 14, the only people who were at his house were Alex Ferguson and (former United scout) Joe Brown. They signed him on. Our chief scout was still sat in his office, waiting for him to come down to City. And the rest is history." Citys loss was Uniteds gain — and 26 years later, Giggs is still ramming that message home. "I still enjoy training, the buzz before the game, the buzz when we win," Giggs told The Times of London. "As long as that lasts, Ill carry on." Joe Klecko Jersey .Y. - The New York Rangers have reached a one-year contract extension with goalie Cam Talbot, keeping Henrik Lundqvists backup away from unrestricted free agency. Sam Darnold Jersey . Trailing 2-1 from the first leg, Fiorentina levelled on aggregate in the 14th minute when Joaquin Sanchez Rodriguez headed back a long ball from David Pizarro and Pasqual smashed home an angled volley. http://www.authenticnyjetspro.com/Jamal-adams-jets-jersey/ . 4 jersey of former defenseman Rob Blake this coming season. The ceremony will take place prior to the Kings January 17 game against Anaheim.(SportsNetwork.com) - After taking over first place in the Central Division, the Nashville Predators will try to make up ground on NHL-leading Anaheim on Sunday night when they visit the Ducks. The Predators won for the sixth time in eight games on Saturday night, but it was not easy as they recorded a 7-6 overtime victory after blowing a big lead. Nashville led 5-1 at one point and was still up by three goals in the latter stages of regulation, but Los Angeles scored three times in the final 2:01 of the period. The Preds escaped with the win when Roman Josi scored just 18 seconds into overtime, taking a pass from Filip Forsberg before skating up the middle and beating the Kings Martin Jones from between the circles. I had a lot of space and lots of time and good thing it went in, Josi stated. I was a little surprised getting that much space in OT. I just walked down the slot and tried to pick the corner. Forsbergs assist on the play gave him 36 points, one shy of matching the clubs single-season record for a rookie that was set by Alexander Radulov in 2006-07. Mike Fisher, Colin Wilson, Ryan Ellis, Mattias Ekholm, Mark Arcobello and Olli Jokinen also lit the lamp for the Predators, who moved a point past the Chicago Blackhawks for the division lead despite scratching forward James Neal and his 13 goals because of a lower-body injury. Nashville has 53 points on the season, second-most in the Western Conference and three back of Anaheim. Trevon Wesco Womens Jersey. Pekka Rinne was credited with 24 saves in the rough outing and head coach Peter Laviolette may serve well to give his No. 1 netminder a break tonight. That could lead to Carter Hutton getting just his fifth start of the season and first since Dec. 23. Hutton is 0-3-1 on the season with a 2.74 goals against average and .895 save percentage. He lost the only time he faced the Ducks, giving up four goals on 23 shots. The Ducks have been idle since Friday, when they improved to 2-1-0 on an eight-game homestand with a victory over the St. Louis Blues. Matt Beleskey had the winning goal with 9:05 remaining for a 4-3 win. Beleskey extended his career high with his team-leading 16th goal of the season. Five of those have been game-winners, tied for the NHL lead. Andrew Cogliano, Ryan Getzlaf and Kyle Palmieri each scored, with Palmieri lighting the lamp in his return from a six-game absence caused by a shoulder injury. Sami Vatanen had two assists and Frederik Andersen made 39 saves. We find a way. Sometimes it doesnt look like we deserve it, but we find a way to win, Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau said. We know what we have to do in the third period. We played with a lot more structure. Andersen is likely to start tonight and has faced the Preds twice before with one start. The Ducks have won five of their past six versus the Predators. ' ' '