Former Manchester United defender Patrice Evra has criticised Gary Neville, Roy Keane and Paul Scholes for their ‘negative analysis’ during Michael Carrick’s reign as interim head coach
Patrice Evra has slammed three Manchester United icons for their ‘negative analysis’ throughout Michael Carrick’s spell in charge. The former United defender took aim at Gary Neville, Roy Keane and Paul Scholes, with the latter grabbing attention earlier this week.
Following United’s first loss under Carrick – a 2-1 defeat against 10-man Newcastle on Wednesday – Scholes published a brutal Instagram story which he subsequently deleted.
“Michael has definitely got something special about him,” Scholes wrote. “United have been crap last four games… night.”
Scholes’ remarks left sections of the United faithful bewildered, with many suggesting he’s been excessively harsh on the club for some time, reports the Mirror.
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Evra has now joined the debate, slamming Scholes alongside Neville and Keane, who’ve similarly faced accusations of excessive criticism.
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“I hope Paul Scholes’ Instagram story is fake,” Evra told gambling website Stake. “I hope he was hacked.
“To be honest, I’m not surprised at that from Scholesy. He was the quietest player I’ve ever played with in my entire career. Now, in the media, he drops bombshells.
“I really don’t understand the lack of support behind Michael Carrick, he’s one of us and he’s doing very well. There’s been negative analysis from Scholesy, but also from Roy Keane and Gary Neville.
“It annoys me because we want to be in the top four, and those comments are unnecessary, but this is what you do when you work in TV. You can’t be positive, you have to be negative.”
Focusing solely on Neville, Evra went on: “Most of these guys get a managerial job and get fired straightaway. I said to Neville, ‘It’s easy to talk on TV. When you were at Valencia, they asked you for paella, and you gave them fish and chips.’
“After three months, they said goodbye. People can’t forget what they have done as a manager. As players, they’re legends, but as managers, they haven’t done a great job. So for them to speak and possibly kill the career of a manager, it’s a little bit too much.”
United enjoyed a brilliant run of form under Carrick, stringing together four consecutive victories before drawing 1-1 with West Ham. The Reds had returned to form with wins over Everton and Crystal Palace prior to Wednesday’s setback.
Despite the defeat, Carrick’s team sit third in the Premier League standings and remain well-placed to secure Champions League qualification for next season. United’s next fixture comes on Sunday, March 15, when they welcome fourth-placed Aston Villa at Old Trafford.
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