The name of the midfielder “MJ” rarely gets on the front pages of the British press, which is primarily interested in “fried” details, breathtaking transfer rumors and other sensations. The most meticulous snooper of Scotland Yard can not find Scholes name in secular, scandalous or any other chronicles, except sports. Paul struggles with publicity, rarely gives interviews and leaves the impression of a modest, even shy person. The place of his expression is a football field. Such behavior did not make Scholes a world celebrity, but it didn’t stop him from becoming the idol of thousands of football fans. They are really capable of appreciating the talent, intelligence and reference professionalism of a native of Salford.
START
Scholes got into the Manchester United system at the age of fourteen, while in his childhood he fiercely supported the Oldham. Paul began playing for the youth club team, where he achieved considerable success and even entered the English national team, which won the European Championship 93 for players no older than 18. At the heart of Manchester United, the red-haired striker made his debut in September 94th, having scored two goals in the Port Veila League Cup to start, and three days later repeating this achievement in the Premier League. The Mankunians then lost to Ipswich 2: 3, but Scholes established a personal tradition of firing doublets.
The generation that made itself known in the mid-90s is rightfully considered one of the most talented in the history of United. Giggs, Beckham, Butt, Neville brothers, Scholes. All of them, having barely celebrated their twentieth birthday, began with the blessing of Alex Ferguson to occupy the seats at the base. Scholes was probably the hardest. It was the era of Eric Canton, which was unrealistic to squeeze out of the team at that time, if you were at least three times recognized as a child prodigy. To beat the rivals, the great Frenchman was helped first by Mark Hughes, and then Andy Cole, the most expensive English football player at that time. Ole Gunnar Sulscher began to strengthen the criminal part of the nickname of “killers with the face of a child”. Under these conditions, Scholes had a hard time, but did he, asthmatics, ever be afraid of difficulties?
In one of the ordinary matches of that time, a seemingly unappealing episode occurred. From the height of past years - symbolic. The Manchester counterattack was gaining momentum, Scholes made a breakthrough, and a partner from midfield was ready to supply him with the ball. Paul instantly assessed the situation, realized that he was covered up tightly and ... with both hands he pointed to the other, free from the striker's guardianship. The midfielder changed his mind in no time, and after a few seconds the ball fluttered in the enemy net. Scholes chalked up an assist gesture.
TAKEOFF
In the spring of 1997, Eric Cantona said goodbye to Manchester United. It seemed that, along with the legendary “seven”, Beckham, who had long dreamed of playing in the center, would inherit the place of the Frenchman on the field. The wise Ferguson reasoned differently: the handsome David passed on the representative attributes of the departed king, but the game ones went to Scholes. To find himself Paul involuntarily helped and terrible injury Roy Keane. From the attack, Scholes was transferred to midfield, where, over time, he revealed all the facets of truly multidimensional talent. The newly made midfielder finally got freedom of action and soon gained a reputation in England as a player with the fastest football brains.
Scholes possesses a rare combination of a deep understanding of the game with the possibility of realizing this understanding. He always knows what to do: give a pass to the touch or hold the ball, play a short pass or complete a long pass, dribble or shoot on goal. The latter is especially cool for Paul: more than one goalkeeper on both the island and the continent suffered from striking, striking long-range strikes of the red-haired Englishman. The organic interaction of a wide variety of creative virtues very soon made Scholes a key player in Manchester's quest for fame.
Even in his old role, Scholes helped the team make a historic double: in one season (1995/96) win both the championship and the FA Cup. After retraining, Paul led United to an even more grandiose triumph. “MJ” of the sample of the spring of 1999 can already be considered a legend: the team added an epic victory in the Champions League to the familiar internal double. Scholes himself missed the decisive match against Bayern due to disqualification (well, he does not like noisy events), but no one would ever think of underestimating his contribution to that success. The most important goals against the same Bavaria, Barcelona, Inter in the League, the decisive goal for Newcastle in the Cup final, 6 assists in the league are only formal confirmation of the achievements of the midfielder. Even in the time of Canton, he earned the sonorous nickname of the "red prince", but now he has grown to the king.
By the turn of the century, Scholes' career in the national team reached its peak. The Mankunian made his debut there a year before the 98 World Cup and immediately scored a goal against Italy. Scholes went to the French mundial in the status of a base player, but he did not gain fame there, like the whole team. Soon the midfielder became the darling of the new coach Kevin Keegan. Inspired by trust, Scholes made a hat-trick already in the first match of Keegan against Poland, and then scored twice in a decisive and terribly principled match with Scotland.
DECLINE
There were matches for Scholes in the national team, which is better to forget about. For example, Paul managed to make history as the only English footballer removed to play for the Wembley national team. With the advent in 2001 of Sven-Joran Ericsson, the role of the midfielder began to change gradually: more and more in the interests of the team he was forced to change his role and lose effectiveness. Suddenly, almost the same thing happened in the club - with the advent of Juan Verona. In United, Scholes had to re-learn the forgotten position of a drawn forward, in the team - more and more often to look at the left flank and pull back. The "Red Prince" continued to act exceptionally useful, but without the former brilliance. For the 2002 World Cup, Scholes exacerbated problems unknown to the rest of the players. Since childhood, he suffered from bronchial asthma, but managed to overcome the disease. Now, the drug he used has gained doping status, which jeopardized the very fact of continuing his career. Only at the last moment before the Japanese-Korean mundial did the situation resolve, however, and this time the triumph passed by England and Scholes.
NEW LIFT
Having deleted from his memory the 2001/02 season that was unsuccessful in all respects, Scholes found the strength in himself for a new leap. With the active participation of Paul, Manchester United returned the title of English champion. Scholes himself filled a bandolier of beautiful and important goals, including a terrific hat-trick in Newcastle. Then the "red prince" managed to collect a bouquet of three dissimilar to each other, but equally beautiful pieces of football art.
To score not only important goals, but also goals that are exclusive in aesthetics are usual for Scholes. He himself considers his best creation to be a blow from the summer after the filing of Beckham, with whom Bradford made happy (in the video).
At the same time, Paul immediately adds that the goal against Panathinaikos, which crowned the exact passes of the Mankunians, was no less valuable for him. If desired, everyone himself will remember a couple of branded balls from the “red prince” (a compilation of Scholes' best goals is in the video).
With the departure of Beckham, and after a couple of seasons and Roy Keane, Paul Scholes, along with Ryan Giggs and Sir Alex himself, became the main bearer of the victorious traditions of modern Manchester United. Traditionally crumpled jointly and severally with the Euro-04 team, he ended his career in the national team (and did not change his decision in the future) and focused on playing for the club. Scholes continued to be the conductor of the openwork combination game of the Mankunians, despite the fact that the repertoire of the “Red Devils” was gradually changing. Paul was able to find a common language with both Van Nistelrooy, and with Rooney, and with Cristiano Ronaldo, helping new partners unlock their playing potential. When constructing the attacks, the red-haired midfielder did not think about forgetting about his own performance, scoring his own ten goals every season.
HEIGHT 500
New Year 2006 presented Scholes with an unkind surprise. In a game with Birmingham, Paul received a severe blow to the head, which resulted in serious vision problems. The season for the midfielder was over, and talked about the end of his career. He returned to the field in the last round match against Charlton.
In the new season, we saw the former Paul Scholes, who led the crusade against Chelsea for the new championship. On October 22, in a match with Liverpool, the “red prince” appeared on the field for the 500th time in a Manchester United shirt (9th result in club history) and, of course, scored. The press, not often recalling Scholes, this time was unanimous in choosing a hero, collecting enthusiastic responses. A word to Sir Alex Ferguson: “The club has a special right to be proud of Paul. He has not changed at all since he came to us as a kid. He still stands firmly on the earth and believes in himself, his family and Manchester United. “I will not talk about Paul Scholes for long. This is simply a terrific player for United and England and one of the best people I've ever met, ”adds another sir, Bobby Charlton. “Paul is too quiet and modest to impossibility, and only this prevented him from winning any individual prize. But this is one of the best players in the world according to everyone who understands at least a little bit in football, ”concludes Sam Allardyce.
For over 12 years at Manchester, Paul Scholes won the Premier League six times, four times the FA Cup, as well as the Champions League, English League Cup, and the Intercontinental Cup. During this time, he participated in 515 matches and scored 135 goals, adding 68 games and 14 goals in the England team. It’s hard not to envy such indicators. However, Scholes' main achievement is not in these numbers. Long before his career ended, he became a symbol. Professionalism. Courage. His football role. Manchester English football. But what about football in general.