Sir Alex Ferguson said Paul Scholes was "blessed with something special" after he produced a 'masterclass' against Newcastle at 36 – and a compilation of that very performance is going viral, 12 years on.
Scholes bossed Manchester United's midfield throughout their opening game of the 2010/11 Premier League campaign.
He created the opener for Dimitar Berbatov with a trademark through ball before assisting Ryan Giggs with an exquisite chiipped pass that was replayed time and time again on Sky Sports.
The midfielder may have been coming towards the end of his career, but it's clear to see he hadn't lost his vision, technique and ability to find space in the middle of the park. How good is this?
Sir Alex Ferguson waxed lyrically about Scholes after the final whistle. “He’s got a marvellous passing range and vision,” the Scot said. “Anyone who gets to that age and retains that appetite is blessed with something special.”
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Even Newcastle manager Chris Houghton was full of praise for both Scholes and Giggs, who was a year older than his United teammate at the time.
"It doesn't surprise me that both players are so effective," said Houghton. "They have been able to avoid the big injuries and they have also played all their football in top quality teams. They showed so much quality from such an early age."
But not everyone is of the opinion that Scholes was an all-time great.
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The former England international was labelled the "most overrated English footballer of all time" by former Premier League midfielder Curtis Woodhouse.
In fact, Woodhouse, who made three appearances in England's top flight for Birmingham City during his two-year spell at St Andrews, has been vocal about Scholes on a number of occasions down the years.
Back in 2020, he pointed out that the former Manchester United midfielder failed to make a PFA Team of the Year during his career – but he did so on two occasions.
He wrote: "Scholes ran that many games for Manchester United he was never ever ever ever voted into the PFA team of the year by the players he was running games against. Just let that sink in."
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"Scholes was never ever voted into the PFA team of the year. It’s voted for by the players of every team competing in the league that year. To be respected by your fellow professionals as the best is the highest accolade.
"Steven Gerrard holds the record of being voted in 8 times."
Woodhouse continued: "He had Keane next to him, Giggs and Beckham either side and Yorke and Cole up top! Oh and Rio and Vidic behind him! Paul Scholes running games is a footballing myth that’s grown and grown since he retired."
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He also mentioned the fact that Scholes failed to win a single vote for the Ballon d'Or prize throughout his career.
Zinedine Zidane, meanwhile, will tell you otherwise. "He's almost untouchable in what he does," the former Real Madrid midfielder said about Scholes.
"I never tire of watching him play. You rarely come across the complete footballer, but Scholes is as close to it as you can get."
He also said one of the biggest regrets of his career is that the opportunity to play alongside the former United midfielder never presented itself.
Thoughts on the Scholes debate?
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Let us know in the comments.
Featured Image Credit: Sky Sports/TikTokTopics: Paul Scholes, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Premier League
