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Man Utd Legend Turns Screw on Michael Carrick After First Defeat

The reverse at Newcastle United saw a familiar voice take aim.

By Toby Cudworth

7:50 AM EST

Trouble is never far away at Manchester United. / Robbie Jay Barratt/AMA/Getty Images, Alex Dodd/CameraSport/Getty Images

“Michael has definitely got something special about him... cos Utd have been crap last 4 games... night 😘”

That was the Instagram post of Paul Scholes after Manchester United’s 2–1 defeat to 10-player Newcastle United on Wednesday night—the first reverse of Michael Carrick’s tenure.

The now-deleted story is the latest criticism from United’s legendary former midfielder, who has previously stated his belief that Carrick should not be appointed as the club’s next permanent manager, regardless of how he performs in the job for the remainder of the 2025–26 season.

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Scholes is not the only high-profile former United player to express such concerns.

Roy Keane, who won everything there is to win alongside Scholes during Sir Alex Ferguson’s heyday, has also called for a big-name appointment—someone with top level experience, capable of dragging United back to their former glory while combating the modern pressures brought by questionable modern technology, overzealous fan channels and exaggerated punditry from former professionals that is encouraged to drive social media views and engagement.

Funnily enough, such expertise seems to make the job even harder to do—just ask Ruben Amorim, Erik ten Hag, Ole Gunnar Solskjær and every other manager who has tried to fill Ferguson’s boots over the past 13 years.

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Does Scholes Have a Right to Criticize?

Scholes’s story has since been removed. / Instagram

Undoubtedly, the result against Newcastle is disappointing. The Magpies played half of the game with a player less, owing to Jacob Ramsey’s red card just before the half-time interval, and United didn’t make their numerical advantage count.

They had chances to win the game but couldn’t find a way past Newcastle goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale. United were then punished by a wonder goal that William Osula would only score again a handful of times if he tried 100 times over.

“Yeah, disappointed obviously, bitterly disappointed,” Carrick reflected postmatch. “It hurts tonight. We definitely came here in good shape, looking to get something from the game, if not win the game, and the way it panned out is obviously very disappointing. There’s no two ways about that.”

Prior to their trip to St James’ Park, United had won six of their seven Premier League games under Carrick’s management. That run included victories over title chasing Manchester City and Arsenal—in back-to-back games no less—and they’ve triumphed in four out of four home games under Carrick (100%) compared to five out of 10 under predecessor Amorim (50%).

Scholes can be frustrated with the defeat, but it’s hyperbole to say United have not been at it for the past four games—they did what needed to be done in wins over Everton and Crystal Palace. It’s simply not true. Compared to the gold standard of Ferguson’s tenure? Sure. But this is a different time, in a different era with different players.

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Carrick’s Reaction Speaks Volumes

Michael Carrick was frustrated with the defeat. / Ash Donelon/Manchester United/Getty Images

The disappointment of the loss was etched all over Carrick’s face. He played 160 matches alongside Scholes for seven years, he knows the standards demanded at Old Trafford. He’s also a realist, like those who have come before him, and is appreciative that wanting to do better and things not always going your way can in fact co-exist.

“Football’s football and there’s things that happen in the game, sometimes go with you, sometimes go away from you but there are certain things we’ve got to do,” Carrick said. “Of course, we can be better, we can be an awful lot better. We’ve put ourselves in a good position, in a decent position with the performances and the results we’ve had, so yeah, tonight hurts.”

United will take comfort from Chelsea being the only other contender for Champions League qualification to win midweek. They inflicted a heavy defeat on Aston Villa, who are starting to lose momentum after injuries to key players, while champions Liverpool inexplicably caved in against bottom of the standings Wolverhampton Wanderers on Tuesday.

It means United are still third, level on points with Villa but with a better goal difference, and ahead of Chelsea and Liverpool by three. So while a setback is difficult to take, Scholes going after Carrick in this way feels like another needless jab.

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