Every young winger looks up to him - Daniel James aspires to be like Giggs

New signing Daniel James impressed on his first appearance for Manchester United after taking some advice from legendary winger Ryan Giggs.

Daniel James was Manchester United's first signing of the season after arriving from Swansea City in a reported £15million deal last month.

Daniel James wants to emulate Manchester United great Ryan Giggs after making a good impression on his debut.

The 21-year-old became Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first United signing after arriving from Swansea City in a reported £15million deal last month.

He appeared in a United shirt for the first time on Saturday as Solskjaer's side beat Perth Glory 2-0 in a friendly at Optus Stadium.

It marks an incredible rise for James, who only made his senior debut for Swansea 17 months ago and has since gone on to represent Wales four times, with each of those caps coming under Giggs' management.

And the youngster believes there is no better mentor than his esteemed compatriot as he aims to make a name for himself at Old Trafford.

"Giggsy, as soon as I came into the Wales set up, had ambitions for me," he told reporters. "The way he brought me and a lot of other youngsters through has been amazing.

"He spoke to me when I first signed for United. His advice was to be myself, which is what I will try to do. 

"He wasn’t a bad player, was he? What he did at Manchester United was amazing. Every young winger looks up to a person like him.

"He was playing in the Premier League until he was 40 and he was still beating players. Credit to him, the way he looks after his body.

"It is amazing for me, when I go away on internationals, to learn from people like him. He is obviously someone I aspire to be like," he said.

James made the most of his 45 minutes on the field in United's opening pre-season friendly against Perth as he put his blistering pace to good use down both flanks.

He is one of two signings made by Solskjaer during the close season, along with right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Crystal Palace for a reported £50m.

Plenty of negativity surrounds United following its sixth-place finish in the Premier League last season, but James was never in any doubt that it is the right club for him.

"When a club like Manchester United come calling you can't say, 'no'. As soon as they did there was no thought in my mind not to be here," he added.