Ryan Giggs has urged Gareth Bale to resist any overtures from Manchester United and stay with Real Madrid.

Giggs spent his whole playing career at United, making a record 963 appearances, and José Mourinho retains a strong interest in Bale. But the Wales manager does not believe the forward – who this week became his country’s leading scorer – should leave the Bernabéu.

“It’s Real Madrid – there are only a handful of clubs who have got that aura,” Giggs said. “Of course you would want to stay there. What’s Gareth won, three Champions League titles? The proof is in that. When you are at clubs like that, you are always going to win things. Gareth has the ability to score every type of goal and there are similarities with Cristiano Ronaldo. They both started out as wingers and they are now goalscorers.”

Giggs’s spell as Wales manager started with a 6-0 win over China, inspired by a Bale hat-trick, but he acknowledges he has plenty to learn and has said he tried to pick the brains of Chelsea’s Antonio Conte and the England rugby union head coach, Eddie Jones. “I spoke to a lot of managers in the time I was out of the game,” said Giggs. “I was busy and always watch other sports. I was in between Conte and Eddie at a charity dinner and I was constantly trying to talk to them. That was a nightmare actually as Eddie was trying to ask me questions about Sir Alex Ferguson and I wanted to get everything out of him.”

Giggs had four games in interim charge of Manchester United after David Moyes was sacked and found it an enlightening experience.

“I learned a lot about how lonely it was when I was United manager,” he said. “When you shut the door of your office and everyone else has gone home, you’re on your own.

“It’s good to have people around and you want those people to be the ones you trust, but it can still be a lonely place. Ultimately you’re the boss and you have to make the decisions.”

Asked where he could get better as a manager, Giggs said: “I am not a naturally outgoing person. Everything just comes with that little bit of experience.”

Wales will face Uruguay in the China Cup final here on Monday. Uruguay beat the Czech Republic 2-0 on Friday with goals from Luis Suárez and Edinson Cavani.