Paul McStay’s testimonial on the 12 December 1995 wasn’t one of the most important evenings in football history. If anything it was a melancholic affair. On the night 37,000 Celtic fans showed up to honour a wonderful captain who’s career had sadly petered out in the nineties after having already achieved greatness in his younger days. Hampered by injuries and burdened by the weight of rivals’ Rangers seemingly unstoppable run of championships, McStay’s career ended anti-climatically. But at least the Celtic fans were given the chance to celebrate this great player and man on an oddly relevant night in Glasgow’s east end.
I say it was oddly relevant because two things stand out for me from that match to this day. The first thing was that Manchester United wore their hideous grey away kit. On a very foggy night in Glasgow I recall several people making the point that United’s players at times looked invisible. It was true, though the weather was partially to blame that strip Umbro provided for United was flawed. A few months later during a defeat against Southampton, Alex Ferguson prompted his players to change into another kit at half-time. He claimed his players were unable to see each other. Many in the media laughed and Ferguson was lampooned by those who suggested he was clutching at straws looking for an excuse. Paradoxically, it was one of the few times in my life I found myself agreeing with the man.
The second significant thing from that evening was the man who scored United’s goal; Paul Scholes. I’d seen Scholes a month or so before on Match of the Day scoring two against Chelsea. He looked like a cracking wee player and although I had (and have) no firm allegiance to any English club, my instincts told me he’d be a favourite of mine. On that cold December evening I kept an eye on him during the warm up; whilst all the other United players did their sprints and stretches Scholes parked himself in front of the ‘keeper and hit shots. At the end of the game whilst delighted Celtic had beaten United 3-1, I was chuffed to have seen Scholes score.
Over the next seven seasons Scholes would go from strength-to-strength, winning all there was to win, scoring at major international tournaments and being lauded by his generation’s greatest midfielders Zinedine Zidane and Xavi Hernandez as their equal. But after those seven (or so) flawless seasons Scholes form dipped. He quit international football in 2004 which actually helped England a great deal because for the next decade they managed to botch selecting the correct balance in midfield. Scholes continued availability would just have made things even worse for England’s run of gutless managers. Domestically he continued to win medals playing next to great players but his influence on those titles is something I’d dispute.
For as much as the whole second half of Scholes career he was a pale imitation of the player he was in his twenties. The number of goals he scored declined and the number of silly tackles he made increased. I always admired his contempt for media duties, but toward the end of his extended career I was less of a fan of Scholes as a player. Perhaps it was injuries, perhaps it was simply age getting the better of him, but Scholes by the end was no longer the “great” player he once was, even if fellow pros continued to say nice things about him. In terms of top level football, which is of course what Manchester United aspire to, he was well passed his use-by-date when he retired in 2011.
Now Scholes has returned to United for the remainder of the 2011/12 season. One can only conclude Sir Alex Ferguson is trying to make a point to folk within the club. I’ll be greatly surprised if Scholes does anything worthwhile in the coming months. Apart from one blast from the past against Barca in 2008 he contributed little during his latter years.
Though I may be wrong.
