New Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal is the new Sir Alex Ferguson

Ryan Giggs claims the Dutchman is 'infectious' and has qualities that made Manchester United great under Sir Alex Ferguson

Making a point: New Manchester United manager Louis van Gaal reminds Ryan Giggs, his assistant, of Sir Alex Ferguson

It was when Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored an injury-time winner for Holland against Mexico, moments after being introduced as a substitute during a World Cup second-round tie in Brazil, that Ryan Giggs knew the real Manchester United would return under Louis van Gaal.

A bold substitution, made by a manager going for broke, and a winning goal to cap a late fightback when the game had seemed lost. It struck a chord with a man accustomed to similar drama under Sir Alex Ferguson.

Having already sat face to face with Van Gaal in Holland prior to the World Cup, Giggs had experienced the straight-talking, decisive nature of the 62-year-old before watching from afar as the Dutch progressed to the semi-finals in Brazil and he admits that the similarities with Ferguson were unavoidable.

Jailed Venezuelan opposition leader put on trial in Caracas

Leopoldo Lopez, the leader of the anti-government protests that rocked the socialist administration of Nicolas Maduro, is charged with inciting violence after wave of unrest left 43 dead

    Leopoldo Lopez (C) after handing himself over to the police back in February

Leopoldo Lopez, the jailed Venezuelan opposition leader, has been put on trial behind closed doors for allegedly inciting violence at anti-government protests that swept the country.

The regime of President Nicolas Maduro has accused Mr Lopez of masterminding the wave of unrest that left 43 people dead and nearly 900 injured.

Mr Lopez had called for peaceful protests and his supporters blame the Venezuelan state security forces for the violent crackdown.

Sudanese Christian woman Meriam Ibrahim arrives in Italy

Ms Ibrahim, who was spared a death sentence for apostasy in June for refusing to renounce Christianity, meets Pope Francis after landing in Rome en route to US

Meriam Ibrahim, the Christian woman who was spared a death sentence for apostasy and then barred from leaving Sudan, met Pope Francis on Thursday after arriving in Rome to jubilant scenes following intense international efforts to free her.


Ms Ibrahim and her husband Daniel Wani personally thanked the pontiff for his support and he in turn thanked her for her courage and staying true to her Christian faith despite the threat of execution when they met for nearly half an hour at the Vatican.

Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, described the meeting as “calm and affectionate” and said the Pope wanted it to be a “gesture of support to all those who suffer for their faith, and living in difficult or restrictive situations”.

Air Algerie plane wreckage found in southern Mali

Wreckage from plane and human remains found at what is thought to be crash site of Air Algerie flight which disappeared en route from Burkina Faso to Algiers with 110 passengers and six crew on board including 51 French nationals

Air Algerie plane parking in the international airport of Algiers- the Air Algerie flight disappeared from radar screens over Mali 50 minutes after take off en route from Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso to Algiers

The wreckage of an Air Algerie flight which vanished from radar in West Africa has been discovered near Mali's border with Burkino Faso, according to officials.

Burkina Faso's commander in chief Gilbert Diendere said the burnt-out wreckage of flight AH5017 was found south of the Mali town of Gao, 30 miles north of the border.He said searchers found human remains and burned and scattered plane wreckage at the site.

The search team had gone from Burkina Faso to Mali to follow up reports from a resident who described seeing a plane go down.

11 parents of abducted girls die from stress and attacks in Nigeria

In just three months, seven fathers have been killed by insurgents and at least four more parents have died of heart failure 

In the three months since Islamic extremists kidnapped more than 200 Nigerian schoolgirls, 11 of their parents have died, town residents say.

The town where the girls were kidnapped, Chibok, is cut off by militants, who have been attacking villages in the region.

Seven fathers of kidnapped girls were among 51 bodies brought to the Chibok hospital after an attack on the nearby village of Kautakari this month, said a health worker who insisted on anonymity for fear of reprisals by the extremists.

At least four more parents have died of heart failure, high blood pressure and other illnesses that the community blames on trauma due to the mass abduction 100 days ago, said community leader Pogu Bitrus, who provided their names.