Paul Scholes' response to Roy Keane leaving him out of his dream Man Utd XI

10 December 2023 , 08:00

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Paul Scholes' response to Roy Keane leaving him out of his dream Man Utd XI

Roy Keane's decision to leave Paul Scholes out of his dream Manchester United XI sparked passionate responses from several people - but not Scholes himself.

The pair lined up alongside each other for the Red Devils for several years and won an astonishing amount of titles together, but that was not enough for Scholes to make Keane's ideal starting line-up of former team-mates.

His comments came a decade ago during a documentary for ITV, in which Keane names the following dream team: "Peter Schmeichel; Paul Parker, Jaap Stam, Gary Pallister, Denis Irwin; Paul Ince, Roy Keane, David Beckham, Eric Cantona, Cristiano Ronaldo, Ruud van Nistelrooy."

Arsenal icon Patrick Vieira, also part of the programme, instantly notices Scholes' omission and presses Keane for comment. "Scholes, no doubt about it, I think Scholes, for me, was the best English player and one of the best United players that I played against. He can do everything," added the Frenchman.

However, Keane is firm in his stance and replies: "Having a great career doesn't mean you are a great player - there's a big difference. I'm not saying Giggsy wasn't (great), but do I leave out Ronaldo, one of the world's great players? Do I leave Becks out?"

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"You don't win titles by having choirboys in your dressing room. Did Beckham challenge the manager? And it doesn't mean you are challenging the manager if you marry a certain woman - far from it."

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Roy Keane did not name Paul Scholes in his dream Man United XI (Action Images)

While Vieira may have been frustrated by Scholes being overlooked, the man in question wasn't annoyed in the slightest. Years later, the United legend was asked about his feelings towards Keane's decision and offered up a typically humble response.

"When people name teams, it's a matter of opinion," Scholes told Manchester United's official podcast. "Me and [David] Maysy could sit here all day and pick 10 different teams, the amount of brilliant players that played here, so I wasn't bothered by it. I'm still not bothered by it."

As with any debate of this nature, many will have differing opinions, but the consensus among both the United faithful and neutral fans is that Scholes is a Premier League great. That is likely to mean more than a place in Keane's ideal XI.

Josh O'Brien