Manchester United legend Paul Scholes believes even five-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi would struggle at his former club.
The 20-time English champions have endured a difficult start to the season and find themselves seven points behind joint-Premier League leaders Manchester City, Chelsea and Liverpool.
Consequently, pressure is mounting on the shoulders of Red Devils boss Jose Mourinho, whose pragmatic approach has been seen as one reason why attack-minded players are struggling under him, with Scholes the latest to lend his voice.
“I know [Alexis Sanchez] has qualities and has been a good player but I never saw him as a United player. I saw him as a bit selfish, someone who played for himself sometimes,” he told ESPN.
“I didn’t think he was a player that we needed, especially for that type of money. How would we be able to get rid of him now when he earns those wages? The signing felt like it happened just to stop Man City signing him.
“It feels like every player who comes into the team struggles. I feel like we could sign Lionel Messi at the moment and he’d struggle in this team.”
“I didn’t like the manager praising West Ham’s chief scout after the defeat there and congratulating him on finding [Issa] Diop,” Scholes added.
“It was a massive dig at his own scouts. If you’re a scout at Man United, how can you know what type of player to look for when the manager is changing his team every week and his formation all the time? Where’s the blueprint for the player you want? It must be an impossible job.
“[Mourinho] still is [a great manager]. Well, I think he still is, but you wonder why his side keep getting outplayed. People talk about the first 10 games of this season but last year it was the same.
“The reason we finished second last year was because of the goalkeeper. Good goalkeepers are not easy to find. [David] De Gea’s not been quite as good this season, not saving them all like did all last year.”
United’s season so far
Heading into this weekend’s mouthwatering showdown against Chelsea the Red Devils, to date, have played 11 matches across three different competitions.
Of those contests they’ve won on five occasions, with four coming in the Premier League, whilst losing four times including a shock League Cup elimination to Championship side Derby County on penalties.
United, meanwhile, have registered 25 goals (one every 39.6 minutes) and conceded 24 times (or 2.2 per game). After their league match at Stamford Bridge, against Mourinho’s former club, there’s a date with Juventus in the Champions League meaning a reunion with club great Cristiano Ronaldo.
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