Manchester United legend undermines Old Trafford summer recruitment

Manchester United aren’t the easiest club to manage and doing so on an interim basis certainly seems to come with its ups and downs.

Michael Carrick won his first four matches after succeeding Ruben Amorim, starting with a 2-0 win against city rivals Manchester City and making the former head coach look worse by comparison with every passing game.

The pressure is always on, though, and not just from the people who hold sway inside the club. Sometimes, the grey area between inside and outside can spawn the most vituperative criticism.

Paul Scholes speaks out on ‘crap’ Man United

Man United are one of a handful of the biggest Premier League clubs whose management and players are forever being buffeted around the inside of the punditry tumble dryer.

It’s handy that the likes of Gary Neville and Roy Keane are such prominent voices when things are going well, but the scrutiny of an army of club legends is bound to make life difficult for a struggling boss.

Carrick isn’t struggling. Performances are just part of the picture and most supporters are fixated on results, given what’s at stake at this juncture in the season. Since Amorim’s departure and Darren Fletcher’s brief caretaker leadership, Carrick has won six of his eight Premier League games.

Wednesday’s late defeat at Newcastle United was an unwelcome setback but United’s form under Carrick has been a significant upgrade. Nevertheless, former Red Devils midfielder Paul Scholes appears to be unimpressed.

A long-time teammate of Carrick for both club and country, Scholes is notoriously tricky to win over. He holds United to the impossible standards set while he and Alex Ferguson were at the club and has a keen eye for when they’re falling short.

In a now-deleted post on Instagram stories, Scholes verbalised his discontent after United’s loss at St James’ Park.

“Michael has definitely got something special about him…cos Utd have been crap last 4 games…night,” posted the 51-year-old ex-United midfielder and 11-time Premier League winner, signing off with a kiss.

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Five of Scholes’ Premier League titles were won alongside Carrick, whose attention is squarely on the job at hand.

Long since knocked out of the FA Cup, United have a 10-day break before a vital battle against Aston Villa in the race for Champions League places when the Premier League returns after this weekend’s fifth round fixtures.

United then play AFC Bournemouth away and Leeds United at home before a crunch clash with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge in the middle of April.

If United’s form holds – at least in terms of results, which even Scholes surely finds difficult to question – they’ll be in a strong position as they ready themselves for that vital fixture.

Carrick may or may not be in the running to inherit the job proper in the summer and clearly takes his role very seriously. For some United fans, the sense that one or two ex-players aren’t on the same page is never far away.