Michael Carrick, the manager of Manchester United, has stated that he was not bothered by the criticism directed at him by Paul Scholes regarding his team’s recent performances.
This reaction followed Scholes’ comments on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast after United suffered a defeat against Newcastle United last week.
On Instagram, the former United midfielder expressed, "Michael has definitely got something about him...because United have been poor in the last four games...goodnight." This came after Newcastle, playing with ten men, managed to secure a 2-1 victory at St James’ Park, marking Carrick’s first loss since he assumed the role of interim manager in January.
Scholes later clarified that his remarks were not intended to offend Carrick and admitted he had reached out to him to ensure there were no hard feelings.
He stated, "It was in no way intended to be offensive towards Michael. He is one of the nicest individuals in football, and offending him was the last thing I wanted to do.
I contacted Michael right away and explained, 'Look, I didn’t mean to upset you.' He assured me that he was not hurt by it."
Scholes added, "I think people perceived it differently from the intention behind my words. The only point I was making is that I felt they hadn’t performed well in the last four matches, yet he is still managing to yield results.
During my time with the greatest manager in the world, we were often reminded that, at times, luck plays a crucial role. With red cards and various incidents that occur during matches, sometimes you do need a bit of luck; that was all I meant."
Having played alongside Scholes at United for seven years, some have interpreted the comments as indicative of a personal conflict between the two, who now find themselves on opposing sides in the media narrative.
During a press briefing ahead of United’s encounter with Aston Villa in the Premier League, Carrick brushed off Scholes’ criticism.
"There's really not much to discuss," Carrick remarked. "This reflects our current climate where social media and headlines can be interpreted in various ways.
We must stay calm and grasp the true essence of what is being conveyed. It’s acceptable for people to hold differing opinions."
He continued, "Often, statements get exaggerated to extremes, but I'm not bothered by it. Therefore, I prefer not to make a significant issue out of it."
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