Manchester United have been going through somewhat of a crisis over the last couple of years, with the club constantly falling way below the high expectations they’ve set for themselves.
Ruben Amorim’s side ended the previous campaign in a measly 15th in the Premier League, subsequently registering the lowest-ever finish in such a competition since its formation in 1992.
The main issue with his side is the lack of solidity in the middle of the midfield, with the 40-year-old yet to establish his best partnership in such an area of the pitch.
The likes of Bruno Fernandes, Casemiro, Manuel Ugarte and Kobbie Mainoo are all on the books, but the manager still hasn’t figured out which duo are best suited to his 3-4-2-1 system.
However, such an area has previously been one of the Red Devils’ strongest, with Sir Alex Ferguson previously able to rely on one of the best talents England’s top-flight has ever seen.
Paul Scholes time at Manchester United
Paul Scholes was a part of the Class of ‘92 squad, which saw a plethora of academy stars making the jump into the first team and help Ferguson win his 13 Premier League titles in Manchester.
Very few people could’ve imagined the impact he would’ve made in the first-team squad, subsequently going on to register over 700 appearances for his boyhood club across all competitions.
The vast majority of his appearances for the Red Devils came in England’s top-flight, being a part of 11 of the club’s top-division title triumphs – the second most in their history behind Ryan Giggs.
He spent a total of 19 and a half years as a first-team player for United, spending his entire career with the Red Devils before retiring in the summer of 2013.
Scholes would end his career with a total of 27 trophies won at Old Trafford, further highlighting the success that he achieved during his stint as a professional.
However, the club thought they had their next version of the Englishman a couple of years ago, but ultimately, he was offloaded on the cheap by former boss Erik ten Hag.
The former United star who was labelled the new Scholes
During the Ten Hag era as United manager, the Dutchman spent over £600m on new additions to help push the club back in the right direction after years of failures on the pitch.
The likes of Casemiro and Raphael Varane were both brought in from Real Madrid, offering the side the needed top-level experience if the club were to get back to their former glory.
The latter of the duo left on a free transfer in the summer of 2024, with the Brazilian still unable to prevent his discipline from spilling over, subsequently picking up four red cards in the last three years.
Donny van de Beek was another player who joined the Red Devils in an attempt to take the club up the table, joining in a £35m deal with £5m in add-ons back in the summer of 2020.
However, like many of the additions in recent years, he would fail to hit the heights many thought he would, subsequently registering a total of 62 appearances over a four-year period at Old Trafford.
He was labelled as “the new Scholes” by compatriot Edwin van der Sar at the time of his transfer, but it’s safe to say that the Dutchman struggled to put a run together in England.
Van de Beek only made over 20 appearances once in his four seasons in Manchester, with injuries also playing their part in disrupting his progress and nailing down his place in the starting eleven.
Transfer Fee
£35m
Appearances
62
Cost per appearance
£564k
Minutes played
2,151
Cost per minute
£16.2k
Goals
2
Cost per goal
£17.5m
Assists
2
Cost per assist
£17.5m
Goal involvements
4
Cost per goal involvement
£8.75m
While he did pop up with multiple goals, his impressive moments were too and far between, subsequently seeing him falling down the pecking order in recent years.
He made just two appearances in 2023/24 before being sold by Ten Hag in the summer of 2024, joining LaLiga side Girona for a reported €500k (£435k).
However, the decision to offload him may have been the right one, especially after the 28-year-old limped off with an Achilles injury in the clash with Athletic Club on Tuesday night.
It’s a real shame that his move to England didn’t work out, especially after the hierarchy forked out a mammoth sum to prise him away from
Ajax back in 2020.
The praise in the early stages of his time at United gave reasons for the supporters to be optimistic, but unfortunately, they’re still hunting for the player to fill the boots of Scholes at Old Trafford.