Paul Scholes, former Manchester United midfielder and current pundit, has not minced his words when discussing the team’s recent exit from the Europa League. In his assessment of the quarter-final match, Scholes called it “an absolute disaster” for the team, leaving no doubt about his disappointment with their performance. As Man United now look ahead to the remainder of their season, the criticism from their former star player serves as a reminder of the high expectations placed upon the club and the need for improvement.
Manchester United legend, Paul Scholes, gave a damning verdict on the club’s performance as they crashed out of the Europa League following a humiliating 3-0 defeat against Sevilla in Spain. Youssef En-Nesyri capitalised on a mistake from Harry Maguire, and after Loic Bade’s header, he punished David De Gea’s slip in a 3-0 win that saw United make a humiliating Europa League exit, 5-2 on aggregate. The Red Devils had knocked out Barcelona and Real Betis to reach this stage, but for the sixth season running, their European dreams ended in defeat to Spanish opposition.
A shambolic performance saw a host of errors from United players, with Scholes admitting the performance was not good enough from Erik ten Hag’s side. Scholes picked out two of United’s misfiring star names for particular criticism, with keeper Davis De Gea and Jadon Sancho under his spotlight. The former midfielder commented that United were out-fought, out-played, lacked the ability to take the ball, and were so sloppy on the ball, they lacked aggression in their own play.
Scholes also commented that the hostile crowd made a difference, and the United players needed to go into the dressing room and think, “I need to be ready for this and my first touch has got to be ready.” He highlighted Jadon Sancho’s poor start to the game, with the ball bouncing off him three times in the first five minutes, adding that the winger needed to be livened up and be ready. Scholes concluded by stating that Ten Hag needed better players to fill his squad, and the defeat could help him during the summer transfer window.
In conclusion, the quarter-final of the Europa League was nothing short of a nightmare for Manchester United, and Paul Scholes didn’t mince his words when analyzing the game. It’s clear that the team needs to regroup and reassess their approach to future games if they hope to achieve success in the near future. Hopefully, this disappointing performance serves as a wake-up call and motivates the team to come back even stronger next time. Until then, fans will undoubtedly be reflecting on what could have been and hoping for a better result in the future.
