Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has told captain Bruno Fernandes to keep his mouth shut after United fell to a 2-0 defeat against Hull City at the MKM Stadium on Saturday.
The opening-day Premier League loss saw United concede twice from set pieces in the first half against newly promoted Hull, who have been widely tipped as favourites for relegation.
Following the match, United captain Fernandes complained to the media that his side had made the "same mistakes as we did last season (in away matches)". The Portugal midfielder added: "Every away game we give too much of the ball to them. In the first 20 minutes, the goalkeeper was the one with the most touches."
Fernandes urged his team to adapt, saying: "We needed to press more, be more aggressive, and then again we need to work on set plays and not concede these types of goals. Against these types of teams, they are waiting for that moment."
Scholes, speaking on his podcast The Good, The Bad & The Football, sponsored by Midnite, took issue with the captain's public assessment. The 51-year-old former player said: "I'd be interested to know what he means by them. What mistakes were they giving away?"
Scholes criticised Fernandes' complaints about the performance, saying: "Especially when you perform the way he did as well, I think it's probably best to keep your mouth shut. He didn't have his best performance either."
Criticism of team leadership
Scholes spent his entire professional playing career at Old Trafford, winning 11 Premier League titles under Sir Alex Ferguson before retiring in 2013. Manchester United, one of English football's most successful institutions, appointed former midfielder Michael Carrick as manager following a period as interim boss.
Scholes and former United forward Dion Dublin suggested that Fernandes, alongside left-back Luke Shaw, had undermined manager Carrick with their post-match remarks. Shaw had claimed after the match that United went into the fixture underprepared, saying: "It’s not us and we knew it was coming. I think as a whole, as a group, collectively, we could prepare better. Especially knowing how good they are at set plays and what their dangers are."
Reacting to the left-back's comments, Scholes said: "Luke Shaw always says something. And that's a slight on your staff. That's a slight on your manager. If one of your players is saying that you'd be like f***ing hell, you'd have them in on Monday morning."
Scholes added that such public statements reflected poorly on squad discipline compared to his time under Ferguson. "Those comments are not so much about respect but you speak about fear of managers and the things they've said, they're a slight on the manager and staff," Scholes said. "As a player if we did that about Sir Alex, "we weren't prepared", f***ing hell, you'd be right in and he'd probably single you out in front of the full team."
Dublin agreed with Scholes, stating that players should avoid handing scrutiny to opponents and critics. "You want silence," Dublin said. "If your skipper has to speak then he has to speak, but then you make sure he says the things that don't open a can of worms. You just don't give anyone any ammunition because the ammunition is there from your performance."
Managing squad relationships
Dublin also argued that the hardest challenge for Carrick is severing close personal ties with squad members after moving from interim to permanent manager.
"The friend or colleague issue that he had as an interim, the hardest thing now that he is permanent is that he is going to have to sever those connections, which I think will be hard for someone like Michael because he's a nice bloke," Dublin said. "But now he's the manager he's going to have to (stop) the "how are you doing pal", "how are you doing mate", "do you fancy going for a beer". You can't do that anymore. (Now, it's) I'm the manager, you're that. Do as you're told."
Defensive confusion at set piece
Scholes also reacted to defender Harry Maguire accidentally marking teammate Noussair Mazraoui in the build-up to Hull's opening goal from a corner. The centre-back held onto Mazraoui before the man he was supposed to be marking, Semi Ajayi, headed the ball into the net.
"The only thing I can think is that he's lost his bearings. He's looking at the ball, he can feel somebody in front of him, and he's just gone like that (hugging motion)," Scholes said. "It doesn't look good, does it? I'd like to hear him explain it."
Manchester United return to action on Sunday when they host another newly promoted side, Ipswich Town, at Old Trafford.
