Paul Scholes says Ruben Amorim repeated a key mistake David Moyes made at Man Utd

Scholes points out early misstep by Ruben Amorim at Man United

Paul Scholes has drawn a parallel between Ruben Amorim’s time at Manchester United and David Moyes’ brief stint in charge, saying the new manager made a key mistake soon after taking over.

Amorim was dismissed last week after 14 months in charge of the team. There had been plenty of criticism throughout his time at Old Trafford, but results did get better after a rough first year that ended with United finishing 15th in the league and losing to Spurs in the Europa League final.

Darren Fletcher stepped in for two matches following Amorim’s exit, but Michael Carrick is expected to take over as interim head coach until the end of the season. The club plans to announce a permanent replacement this summer, and several names have already started to emerge.

The next person in line will need to address some of the issues that cropped up under Amorim. Scholes pointed out one decision he believes set things back from the start.

Paul Scholes says Ruben Amorim missed a trick with Ruud van Nistelrooy

There has been a lot of talk around Old Trafford in the past week, with supporters discussing not just Amorim’s sacking but also who should take over in the short term.

While many were pushing for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to return, Ineos opted for Carrick after meeting with several candidates. His background and approach seemed to fit what they were looking for.

Ruud van Nistelrooy was also considered for the interim position. He had already been part of Ten Hag’s staff and even took charge on a temporary basis after Ten Hag was let go.

Van Nistelrooy stepped in for four matches during that time, picking up three wins and one draw. But when Amorim arrived, he brought in his own team, leaving little room for holdovers from the previous regime.

The conversation didn’t stop there. Van Nistelrooy went on to manage Leicester City but struggled there too, leading to relegation and eventually losing his job. Still, Scholes believes having someone familiar with English football could have made a difference for Amorim at United.

Moyes left behind more than just Phelan and Meulensteen. Eric Steele played an important role as goalkeeper coach during Ferguson’s era. He learned Spanish specifically to help connect with David de Gea before Moyes replaced him with Chris Woods.

What did David Moyes say about Mike Phelan and Rene Meulensteen?

Scholes is right. Moyes did admit that his decision to overhaul the coaching staff at United in 2013 was one of his biggest regrets, especially when it comes to Phelan.

However, Moyes also revealed he did try to keep Meulensteen as part of his staff.

Speaking to beIN Sports, as per The Mirror, Moyes said: “In hindsight, I should have kept one of the staff that Alex had – which I tried to do and it didn’t work out.

“I offered Rene the job and he decided not to stay. If I knew Rene wasn’t going to stay, I would have been better keeping Mike.

“Managers take their whole staff with them when they go to new clubs so it wasn’t unusual.”