Scholes: 10 of the very best games in Manchester United

Picking Paul Scholes' best 10 games in a Manchester United is nigh on impossible. He was one of the finest midfielders to ever pull on a football shirt, and also one of the most consistent.

For that reason it would be silly to suggest there's a definitive list of Scholesy's best performances. What we do have, though, is a list of 10 that have, for one reason or another, lived long in the memory. 

Port Vale (A) – League Cup, 2nd round 1st leg, 21 Sep 1994 
Hopes were high for one red-headed Salford teenager back in 1994, and he wasted no time in living up to them. Lining up alongside other raw recruits such as Neville, Butt, Beckham and Gillespie, he showed no signs of nerves as he latched onto a backpass on 36 minutes and chipped coolly over the keeper to equalise. He then headed the winner eight minutes into the second half. Paul Scholes, he scored goals. A star was born.

Nottingham Forest (H) – Premier League, 28 April 1996
By the time United were closing in on a third Premier League title in four seasons, "Fergie’s Fledglings" were ensuring Alan Hansen would be eating his words for years to come. None more so than Paul Scholes, whose form enabled him to dislodge £7million signing Andy Cole from the centre-forward position. Newcastle were still chasing United hard in the title race, so there was a tense first 40 minutes before the 20-year-old’s perfectly executed volley opened the scoring. United then ran riot.

Newcastle United (N), FA Cup final, 22 May 1999 
As United bore down upon a historic Treble, Scholesy had established himself as an attacking midfielder rather than a striker. He was suspended from the imminent Champions League final against Bayern Munich but he made up for it at Wembley. After Roy Keane went off injured in the opening minutes, Paul bossed the middle of the park and it was his inch-perfect pass that allowed Teddy Sheringham to open the scoring. Then, when his chance came to seal the win on 52 minutes, he grabbed it with a clinical low strike from the edge of the box.

Newcastle United (A) – Premier League, 12 April 2003 
With Arsenal leading in the league and enjoying a better goal difference, United had to come back from a goal down at St James’s Park and win handsomely. After Solskjaer’s equaliser, enter Scholesy, as a volley, a 20-yard howitzer and a composed side-foot finish earned him a hat-trick and put United out of sight early in the second half.

Tottenham (A) – Premier League, 27 April 2003
The St James’ Park massacre had been followed by two Scholes goals in a win over Blackburn but, with Arsenal faltering at the top, a win at White Hart Lane was essential to keep daylight between the challengers. A sixth goal in three games for United’s chief string-puller prompted a 2-0 win and capped his first and only 20-goal season.

Arsenal (N) – FA Cup semi-final, 4 April 2004
The Gunners’ "invincibles" were dreaming of a domestic treble when they came up against United’s midfield genius at Villa Park. The rivalry between the two sides was at its height and few were more up for the fight than United’s centre pairing. As Roy Keane snapped into tackles, Scholes scored the only goal on 31 minutes and epitomised the hunger of a United side that knew this was the best chance of silverware that season.

Liverpool (H) – Premier League, 22 October 2006 
There are few better ways to celebrate your 500th game for United than a match-up with Liverpool at Old Trafford. Always one to rise to the occasion, the milestone man scored the opener. He first glanced a header skilfully towards Rooney then darted into the box to meet Ryan Giggs’ low cross and force it past Pepe Reina. His industry and playmaking kept Liverpool under the cosh in the second half and Rio Ferdinand’s second capped a fine way to celebrate a half-millennium of United games.

Barcelona (H), Champions League, semi-final 2nd leg, 29 April 2008 
How can we forget this one? The first leg had been a squeaky-tight affair at the Nou Camp and the Old Trafford return leg looked like going the same way. Never a team to give you many chances, Barca were pressured into a loose pass on 14 minutes and it ran to Scholes, 30 yards out. He let fly and the ball was still rising as it hit the top corner. The rest of the performance was more one of attrition than flair and, as usual, Scholesy got the job done with the minimum of fuss. But that flash of brilliance proved the difference that sent United to a first European Cup final since 1999.