Paul Scholes believes Manchester United defender Luke Shaw has to change position to prolong his Premier League career.
Shaw was once rated as one of the best left-backs in the world but his stock has fallen over the past few seasons, largely due to injury issues.
In his prime Shaw was not only one of the best full-backs in the Premier League but an England regular who scored in the Euro 2020 final.
But reoccurring injury issues limited Shaw to just 12 Premier League appearances during the 2023-24 campaign and only seven last season.
At times Shaw has been used as a left-sided centre-back and Scholes believes he needs to permanently move into a central position to extend his Manchester United career.
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In a recent interview, Shaw said United were benefitting from the absence of any ‘stragglers’ in the squad.
Responding to Shaw’s comments, Scholes said on The Overlap: ‘Who do you think Luke Shaw was aiming the stragglers comment at?
‘He hasn’t played a game for two years, has he? When he’s fit, he is one of the very best.’
When it was suggested that Shaw will likely play as a left-sided centre-back going forward and move away from the left-back position, Scholes responded: ‘He has to, there’s no way he can get up and down the pitch anymore.’
Shaw’s comment was seen as a dig at Manchester United outcasts Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Antony and Alejandro Garnacho.
What Luke Shaw said about Man Utd 'stragglers'
‘I think Ruben Amorim’s mentality and demands [show he’s the right man for Manchester United]. He’s extremely tough on the group.
‘He leaves no stone unturned and I think there are no stragglers in this group anymore. I think everyone has to put the team first. He’s made that very clear.
‘I think he’s picking players on how he feels will be best for the team and that’s his choice. As players, we’re fully behind him and fully behind on his ideas and what he wants to implement in this team.
‘We feel like a real team, especially this pre-season. Since I’ve been back, the group is so together and I think that’s something that we need to keep to make us more of a family and everyone all together and we’re all driving in the same direction.’
Rashford has left Old Trafford to join Barcelona on loan while Sancho, Antony and Garnacho have all been put up for sale.
Manchester United have bolstered Ruben Amorim’s squad with two signings so far this summer – Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo joining from Wolves and Brentford respectively.
The Red Devils have also agreed a £74m deal to sign Newcastle United target Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig.
Discussing United’s squad ahead of their Premier League opener against Arsenal next weekend, Scholes said: ‘There’s still big gaps in the team.
‘It feels promising with those two signings but there’s still gaps elsewhere. They need legs, quality and control in midfield and you look at the goalkeeper as well.
‘You can’t fix the situation in one transfer window but they’ve made a start.’
Asked where he expects Manchester United to finish next season, Scholes added: ‘It’s a tricky one isn’t it because we saw how bad they were last season.
‘Although it’s looking better there are still issues with the team. We don’t want to go through a season like that again.
‘Maybe if they can get top-six that would be acceptable. There’s too many good teams above them with Liverpool, Man City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Aston Villa, Newcastle… there’s a lot of competition now to get in that top-six.
‘Last season was unacceptable but I think Ruben Amorim will get time and they’ve made a start with the summer signings.’
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