Manchester United boss Louis van Gaal sees Ryan Giggs as his successor.

Giggs has been Van Gaal's assistant since the Dutchman took over at Old Trafford last summer.

"I expect that he (Giggs) will be the next manager after I am gone," Van Gaal told MUTV.

"Now I have the responsibility. He has tasks that he has to perform like the players. What he has to do, for me, he does it very well."

Just last week Van Gaal spoke of his admiration for the former winger, admitting there was a likeness between him and his own former assistant Jose Mourinho.

''I have to admit, I could not imagine when I spoke with him in May, that he would work so very hard,'' Van Gaal said at a press conference on the eve of United's defeat to Mourinho's Chelsea.

''As an ex-player, you are not used to working hard. He is a very hard worker.

''He reads the game very good, like Jose. But to manage a group you have to learn. What I can see is that he is also learning quickly.''