Earlier this week, Paul Scholes posted a controversial Instagram story after the defeat to Newcastle United, where he said: "Michael [Carrick] has definitely got something special about him... cos Utd have been crap last 4 games.... night."

The following morning, he deleted the Instagram story, after some serious backlash not just from United fans, but from neutral fans who also found his comments weird and unnecessary. 

It's not just fans who found it weird, either. Indeed not, as former United left-back Patrice Evra has offered his thoughts on the comments from Scholes: "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, as well as 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. 

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. 

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." 

Some very strong comments from Evra there, and you have to say it's spot on. The comments from Scholes were so odd, you wouldn't expect that. These guys played with Carrick - are they not supposed to be his friends? 

The Frenchman summed it up well when he said that to work on TV, you have to be negative. A very valid point. They know what gets them clicks, they know what gets them reactions. It is a shame, really. 

What's more is that Evra would know. A few years ago, he was a regular pundit on Sky Sports, alongisde the likes of Keane and Neville. So, he knows first hand what it is like. Maybe that's why he isn't on Sky anymore, because he wanted to give authentic analysis. 

Well, let's see. It just makes it more frustrating that United have to stew on the defeat at St James' Park. By the time they're next in action, their peers would have been in both FA Cup and Champions/Europa League action. After a defeat, you're always desperate for the next game to come along as soon as possible. 

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