Paul Scholes' testimonial mosaic in August 2011
After the Champions League final at Wembley in May, the Manchester United fans who had made the journey down South and stayed beyond the final whistle would have seen Paul Scholes wondering around the pitch waving at the fans, seemingly saying 'goodbye'. After that game, it emerged that no less than 6 Barcelona players including Lionel Messi, Xavi, Andres Iniesta and Victor Valdes had drawn straws in the changing room just to earn the right to swap shirts with the Ginger Wizard after the event. Andres Iniesta came out on top in that encounter.
Since his retirement during the summer, Manchester United were constantly linked with Wesley Sneijder as his replacement. As we all know, a move never materialised for the Dutch playmaker but a man from United's very own youth system seems to have stepped up to the plate with some top performances. Tom Cleverley spent last season on loan at Wigan Athletic and helped them to avoid relegation with some solid performances for the latics. This season however, he has stepped up into the first team with great assurance and been superb alongside Anderson in the centre of midfield. It seems that Cleverley has actively replaced Paul Scholes in the centre of midfield, so I compare the two of them in this piece despite their differing styles of play.
Central Midfielder vs Central Midfielder
Paul Scholes vs Thomas Cleverley
Paul Scholes started off his career as a striker in the youth team banging in goals for fun. When he finally broke into the first team, he started playing as a shadow striker behind Eric Cantona scoring goals and getting assists, linking the play between midfield and striker. He then transformed his game even further to play as a central midfielder who made late runs into the box chipping in with goals. This is where he was arguably most successful for Manchester United, winning multiple Premier League's and trophies alongside Roy Keane in centre midfield. However as he got older, he found it harder to make those late runs and once again transformed his game - now becoming a deep lying playmaker using his amazing passing range to start attacks and link the midfield to the attack.
Thomas Cleverley has been a central midfielder throughout his short career so far, but has also been known to play on the wings too when needed. An all round midfielder, Cleverley is capable of passing, dribbling, crossing and even scoring making him an top asset to any team he's playing in.
So from one generation to the next, I see how these two all round midfielders compare.
PASSING
PS: Paul Scholes has often been called the best passer of a football in world football by his fellow professionals and pundits alike, leading to his nickname in the Manchester United dressing room "Sat Nav" due to his ability to get the ball to whatever destination he wanted to. Long range or short passes, his passing was second to none and by far one of his greatest strengths as a footballer.
GRADE: 10/10
TC: Thomas Cleverley's passing is also very good for a youngster, but he is much more known for his short, quick passes than his accurate long balls. He prefers to keep the ball on the floor and pass and move his way out of/in to situations, and while he is capable of playing a long range pass, it's not his greatest strength.
GRADE: 7/10
CREATIVITY
PS: Scholes' creativity was a large part of the reason he was able to play on for so long into his 30's. He had vision like nobody else and was able to make something out of nothing with a single swing of his boot, despite not being the most flash/skilful of players. He often came up with spectacular moments of creativity, such as his marvellous winning goal vs Barcelona in 2008 en route to Moscow.
GRADE: 9/10
TC: Cleverley's creativity is a big reason as to why Sir Alex Ferguson has such great faith in him making the step up from Youth Team > Wigan > Manchester United first team within 2 seasons. His quick interchanging of pass, ability to beat players with the ball and eye for a through ball make him one of the most creative central midfielders that Manchester United possess this season.
GRADE: 8/10
SHOOTING
PS: Scholes' shooting was what he was renowned for during the early part of his career. He was a goalscoring machine, regularly scoring 10+ goals a season during the late 90's early 00's. He was capable of scoring with his left foot and his right foot whether it be 35 yards out or in the 6 yard box and it was one of his most feared weapons during his prime.
GRADE: 9/10
TC: Cleverley's shooting has never been his greatest asset as he's never really been known as a goalscoring midfielder. He is usually more of a link up man, getting assists and key passes. He did get 11 goals for Watford 2 seasons ago from centre midfield to show he was capable of scoring goals, but he only managed 4 goals for Wigan last season. He's a midfielder capable of scoring goals but it's not his greatest strength.
GRADE: 7/10
TEAMWORK
PS: Paul Scholes was one of the biggest team players in the history of English top flight football. Never in the media spotlight and always quiet, however always there to back up his team-mates on the field of play. He often scored crucial goals for the club and shared defensive duties despite his status at the club as a legend. Even at the age of 36 he made some late runs into the box to try and get late goals.
GRADE: 8/10
TC: Thomas' teamwork is one of his great strengths and one of the greatest factors in his success at settling in to the first team with such ease. He's able to make his runs forward and communicate well with the team. He follows instructions well from the senior players in the side but isn't afraid to dish out instruction too. He's tactically aware too, making him a perfect midfielder for Manchester United.
GRADE: 8/10
DECISIONS
PS: Paul was regularly praised for his excellent decision making in high pressure situations for the club. He always knew when to make those runs into the box later on in his career (as shown vs Manchester City in April 2010) or when to take his time and find the perfect pass. His decision making and composure are two of the reasons that made him such a great footballer.
GRADE: 9/10
TC: Cleverley's decision making is usually good, although on occasion he can be found guilty of trying too hard to score the perfect goal. We often see him playing numerous one-two's with team-mates in and around the penalty area trying to carve out chances and although they do work sometimes (vs Man City in Aug 2011) they sometimes don't work and can leave United thinking they should have shot rather than tried to work it around the defence for the perfect finish.
GRADE: 7/10
TOTALS
PAUL SCHOLES - 45/50
TOM CLEVERLEY - 37/50
So unsurprisingly, Paul Scholes has come out on top comfortably in this battle of the United youth team graduates. Paul Scholes, as described by everyone who is anyone in the game as a world-class midfielder was without doubt one of the greatest midfielders in the history of football. Tom Cleverley has a massive gap to fill in that Manchester United midfield, but if he continues to develop and Manchester United can carry on their early season form I see no reason for him not to slowly fill that void as the years go on.
"There is no doubt for me that Paul Scholes is still in a class of his own. He’s almost untouchable in what he does. 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. One of my regrets is that the opportunity to play alongside him never presented itself during my career."
Zinedine Zidane - August 2010
