The joke was made a few times on Twitter- pundit and club legend Paul Scholes was the real MVP of Manchester United’s 2-0 win at Everton on New Year’s Day. Scholes has consistently been outspoken in regards to the form of Paul Pogba, claiming that United’s £90m midfielder is unfit and simply “just strolling through games.”
Pogba played today like he had heard this critique, and was out on a mission to prove Scholesy wrong. The Frenchman, lined up in his proper position on the left in a 4-3-3, was man of the match with two beautiful assists.
After the game, United manager Jose Mourinho returned fire on Scholes, and did so in a scathing manner.
“The only thing Paul Scholes does is criticize. He doesn’t comment, he criticizes,” Mourinho said.
“It’s not Paul Pogba’s fault that he makes much more money than Paul Scholes. It’s just the way football is. I think Scholes will be in the history books as a phenomenal player, but not as a pundit.”
Wow! You can say a lot of things about Mourinho, but you can’t say that he won’t fight passionately for his players. The Portugese wasn’t done slamming Paul Scholes, while at the same time also tossing some praise his way.
“If one day Paul decides to be a manager, I wish he can be 25 per cent as successful as myself. So 25 is around six trophies. If he is 25 per cent he will be quite happy, but in my mind Paul Scholes is one of the best players I have ever seen playing in midfield.”
“He gave so much to my club that I can only thank him because the prestige of this club is based on people like him. Not every one of us has to be phenomenal like he was as a player. Paul Pogba tries to do his best all the time and sometimes he plays very well, sometimes he plays well, sometimes he doesn’t play so well.”
“I think they (ex-players turned pundits) would love to be here, in the club and that’s a problem that I cannot resolve.”
Mourinho is right in saying that Paul Scholes loves to criticize his former club. He was often extremely harsh on Mourinho’s predecessor, Louis van Gaal.
Scholes has also been highly critical of Antonio Valencia and Daley Blind in the past.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net and TheBank.News, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for the Washington Times, NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, currently contributes regularly to WGN CLTV and the Tribune company’s blogging community Chicago Now.
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