Ryan Giggs was one of the greatest players in the Premier League era and the most decorated British footballer of all time.

BBC Sport has been told Giggs, 48, does intend to work again, to return to football, but what now for him and his reputation?

An original 12-day trial in August 2022 saw a jury fail to reach a majority verdict on charges of controlling behaviour as well as his assaulting his ex-girlfriend Kate Greville and her sister Emma.

Always eager to clear his name and return to the managerial career he had begun with Wales, including leading his country to Euro 2020 qualification, Giggs’ head dropped when he heard how long it could take for the case to conclude after a retrial was ordered.

Almost a year on, a judge has directed he be found not guilty of all three of the charges he faced, cleared of any wrongdoing as the prosecution offered no evidence against him.

The CPS’ decision to withdraw the charges and the abandonment of the retrial mean that Giggs is free to resume the career placed on hold when allegations first arose in November 2020.

However, some will believe that what was left of his good name – already tainted by previous extra-marital affairs – has been damaged.

During the original trial last year, Giggs’ defence barrister Chris Daw QC described his client as a man of “limited” education, but who was “not on trial for being flirtatious”, for being a “compulsive womaniser” or for being a “no-good heartbreaker”.

“If they were crimes, he probably would be guilty for at least some of them,” Daw said at the time.

Following the not guilty verdict Daw said his client was “deeply relieved” at the end of the case and that he “intends to build his life and a career as an innocent man”.

But where and how to rebuild his career?

Even if his managerial hopes have not been ended by the details of his behaviour read out in court, has his reputation suffered to the extent there is not a way back to the football world that has carried on at pace without him?

And if the door has not been closed, who will invite him back in?

Silverware and controversy

Giggs’ name is synonymous with both the world’s most popular football league and – in Manchester United – arguably its biggest club.

Now 49, he made his debut for United aged 17 and finished his career as English football’s most decorated player with 13 Premier League titles, two Champions League triumphs, four FA Cups and three League Cups. He also had a short stint as the club’s manager before becoming Wales boss.

But the latter part of his career wasn’t without controversy off the field. A long-running affair with his brother’s wife was exposed in 2011, and in 2012 he took out an injunction to stop reports of a relationship with model Imogen Thomas being made public.

During the original trial, Giggs acknowledged that his ‘love cheat’ reputation was justified, that he had been unfaithful in all his past relationships and had lied to partners “more than once”.

It suggested a far cry from the clean-cut image that adorned posters, promotional campaigns and – in the job he held before he first faced the accusations – served as a figurehead for Welsh football.

Giggs always denied the charges against him, but in the trial the prosecution played on suggestions there was a Giggs the public knew, and one the former United player knew himself.

Sir Alex Ferguson and a United front

Sir Alex Ferguson was the Manchester United manager who gave Giggs his first-team debut in 1991 and over the course of the next 20 years the club went on a run of almost unrivalled success.

Giggs was a central part of that and for years a banner was displayed at Old Trafford in his honour.

During the trial Ferguson, who shielded Giggs from the glare of the media during his time at United, was called as a character witness for the defence and last year told the court: “If anyone from the media came for him, they had to come through me.”

He added: “He had a fantastic temperament, an absolutely wonderful temperament. He fulfilled everything we ever wished for. He was, without doubt, the best example we had at the club.”

Asked whether he had ever seen Giggs lose his temper or become aggressive, Ferguson answered: “No.”

Needing his 81-year-old mentor to come to his defence in such circumstances may well have been uncomfortable for Giggs, but there were aspects of the trial – and the headlines from it – that would have been simply embarrassing.

During the trial, Giggs was left open to ridicule when his poems were read out to the court by his own defence team.

The court heard Giggs wrote to Kate Greville in April 2017: “I’m not gonna lie, I think of you, I dream of you. Can’t help thinking, pulling you was my greatest ever coo [sic].”

Giggs told the court he had never been faithful in his relationships, but always denied the charges – charges that have now been withdrawn.

What next?

Sources close to Giggs say he feels he has unfinished business as a manager and feels there is no barrier to resuming his career given the verdict.

Giggs has been working as director of first-team and performance at League Two Salford, the club he co-owns, and is said to have enjoyed the role.

If Giggs does return to football, it would be naive to think that recent events and any opinions formed around him will not affect any prospective employers.

At one stage, Giggs had seemed to be destined to be at least given a chance to take charge at the highest level of club football, perhaps one day walking out at Old Trafford as manager as he had done as player.

His time out from the game alone suggests a Premier League opportunity may be hard to come by. If a lower-league side were to take a chance, would Giggs be willing to do so after a career solely among the stars?

Or is an overseas job the only way forward, with Saudi Arabian football building a profile and attracting big names such as Steven Gerrard?

Giggs the manager needs another breakthrough to earn his reputation, having already done so once with Wales.

A Welshman who prioritised Manchester?

Giggs was born in Cardiff, but spent most of his childhood in Manchester, representing England as a schoolboy and playing for Wales as a senior international.

On paper it looked an impressive international career, with 64 caps, 12 goals and the honour of captaining his country.

However, Giggs was never able to shake the perception that he prioritised United over Wales, having frequently missed international matches to keep himself fit for his club.

That is why his appointment as Wales manager in January 2018 was met with scepticism from most supporters and, in some cases, open hostility.

When Wales qualified for Euro 2020 with a home victory over Hungary in November 2019, Giggs had tears in his eyes as he saluted the home supporters at Cardiff City Stadium.

But he stepped aside in November 2020 following his arrest, and was replaced by Rob Page.

Giggs eventually resigned on 20 June 2022 In a statement, he said he had taken the decision so Wales could prepare for the World Cup “with certainty, clarification and without speculation around the position of their head coach”.

As a player, his international career came to be defined by his inability to represent his country at a major tournament.

As a manager, he led them to qualification for a European Championship and laid some of the groundwork for Wales to reach a first World Cup in 64 years.

But when Wales finally made it to the biggest stage, Giggs was absent again, his name not sung by fans.

Page has a contract until the next tournament in Canada, Mexico and the US; Giggs is simply a former employee left to ponder his next move.