The great Paul Scholes finished his distinguished career with far fewer Premier League assists than you might think.
Scholes, who spent 19 years at Old Trafford, will forever be regarded as one of the all-time great Premier League midfielders.
He would regularly leather a pass from 35 or 40 yards and casually walk away like it was nothing.
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But he was hardly a player who would record ten or more assists per season - In fact his best ever assists' tally in a Premier League campaign was just seven.
To put that into further perspective Liverpool full-back Andy Robertson has recorded nine assists this season alone and we are only in March.
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Don't get me wrong, Scholes was undoubtably an important cog in Sir Alex Ferguson's system when it came to build up play and scoring goals, but in 499 Premier League appearances, the 43-year-old only amassed 55 assists.
That's an average of just under three assists every PL campaign.
The fact that James Milner, Peter Crouch and Stewart Downing have recorded more is quite remarkable when you think about it.
Of course, Scholes managed to lift 11 league titles under Sir Alex during his 19 year spell at Old Trafford, but it's surprising that he registered so little in terms of assists.
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Former teammate Ryan Giggs is miles ahead of the rest when it comes to PL assists charts, recording 162 in his career, while Cesc Fabregas (111), Wayne Rooney (103), Frank Lampard (102) and Dennis Bergkamp (94) make up the top five.
Steven Gerrard has 92 assists in total, which will inevitably bring up the classic 'who was the best midfielder out of the former Liverpool midfielder, Frank Lampard and Scholes' debate.
At the end of the 2011 season, Scholes decided to hang up his boots but six months later, he was back in the United team having reversed his decision to retire.
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He played on for another 18 months, winning just one more league title before retiring at the same time as Sir Alex Ferguson.
Speaking to BT Sport, Scholes revealed that Spurs players Gareth Bale and Mousa Dembele made him realise it was time to hang up the boots full time:
"I remember a game against Tottenham at home, it was only the third, fourth game of the season." he said.
"I think we got beat at home 3-2. I played alright in possession, but I remember [Mousa] Dembele cruising past me, Gareth Bale, I know they cruise past people but I remember thinking 'I just can' do this anymore'."
Do you think Scholes was one of the best midfielder's of his generation?
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Let us know in the comments.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Paul Scholes, Football News, Football, Manchester United, Premier League
