Paul Scholes has outlined his intentions following criticism over his sly Michael Carrick dig after Manchester United’s first loss under the interim manager.
Following an extremely impressive start to life in the Manchester United dugout, Michael Carrick suffered his first loss as his side were beaten by a ten-man Newcastle United side.
The Reds suffered a disappointing defeat at St. James’ Park, with William Osula’s 90th-minute strike being the difference maker, following goals in the first half from Anthony Gordon and Casemiro.
Despite this loss, the Reds remain in a fantastic position as they push for a UEFA Champions League spot, with 19 points from their last eight games, leaving them third in the Premier League.
After the Reds’ defeat to the Magpies, Paul Scholes took to social media to take a bizarre dig at the United manager, which he has now cleared the air on.
Scholes makes intentions known
Following United’s defeat to Eddie Howe’s side, Scholes wrote on his Instagram story, “Michael has definitely got something special about him…cos Utd have been s**t last four games.”
The 51-year-old’s former teammate, Patrice Evra, said he hoped the former Red was ‘hacked’ after criticising Scholes’ post.
As reported by BBC Sport, Scholes took to his The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast to clear up his intentions, saying that he has spoken to Carrick about the issue.
“It was in no way intended to be offensive towards Michael,” the former England international said. “Michael is one of the nicest people you will ever meet in football, he’d be the last person that I would want to offend.
“I messaged Michael anyway. I went straight to Michael and said, ‘Look, I was never intending to upset you’. And I don’t think I needed to say that anyway and he told me himself he wasn’t upset by it.”
Former Reds applying pressure
As has always been the case with United, they are a constant topic in the media due to the club’s stature, which sometimes leads to unfair levels of scrutiny.
Given that the Reds have struggled in recent years, it seems rather strange that some of their former players are so quick to shade the side, even though they have drastically improved under Carrick.
At a time when United are successfully attempting to turn their season around, fans and ex-players should be uplifting them rather than slating them at every opportunity.
Next up for the Reds is a crucial home test against Aston Villa on Sunday, March 15, when both sides will be desperate to return to winning ways after disappointing defeats to Newcastle and Chelsea.
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