Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has reiterated that he would gladly accept another Premier League medal after Manchester City were found guilty of breaching the division's financial rules. His stance contrasts sharply with that of former team-mate Wayne Rooney, who does not believe United deserve the honour.
City's guilty verdict and the 2012 title race
City were found guilty of 114 breaches between 2009 and 2018, and edged United to the Premier League title on goal difference in 2012. United thought they had secured the league with victory at the Stadium of Light before City's late comeback against Queens Park Rangers, sealed by Sergio Aguero's famous goal.
City have appealed the Independent Commission's verdict and maintain their innocence, while rival clubs await the sanction, which could range from a fine to a points deduction or even expulsion. There is also a possibility City lose their titles, though the chances of runners-up being promoted to champions appear remote for now.
Scholes: 'I would take it'
Scholes, who has 11 Premier League titles, said he would happily add another medal to his collection. Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football, sponsored by Midnite, he responded emphatically to Paddy McGuinness' assertion that he would not want the title.
“Why not? F*****g yeah. I only played 14 times somewhere in the last six months of the season. But yeah, I would take it,” said Scholes.
“We lost on goal difference that year. Do you not think the rest of our team, our teammates, the manager and the staff are working their bollocks off all year to try and win the league? And just because a team did it wrongly, cheated, that we wouldn’t want it?”
Scholes previously described himself as greedy for more silverware. “Keep hearing ex-teammates saying they want trophies taking off them [City] but don’t want their medals,” he wrote on his Instagram story. “F*** that, I’m a greedy b****** I want my medal”.
Rooney: 'I wouldn't feel comfortable'
Rooney, one of those team-mates, was asked by Match of the Day host Kelly Cates whether he would accept a retrospective medal. “It's difficult,” he said. “I look at it from the players’ point of view. I’m assuming all the players didn’t know what was going on. They went onto the football pitch and won the league, while we finished second. We didn’t finish first. Why would we want a medal for finishing second?”
Rooney previously admitted he would not be comfortable accepting a winner's medal. “I have heard Rio has come out saying about getting another Premier League medal... I wouldn’t really feel comfortable accepting another Premier League medal, if I’m being honest,” he said on the Stick To United podcast.
“I don’t think we deserve it, we didn’t do enough that season to win the league. I think we were six or seven points clear with four or five games to go and we threw it away. I’ve seen everything that has come out over the past few days and listening to people and I was putting myself in a Man City player’s shoes. It might happen, they might take them [medals] away, but I wouldn’t want it [a medal] because I don’t think as a team we deserved it that year because obviously we didn’t finish first. So when I see team-mates saying I want a medal’, I’m happy with the five I’ve won. I wouldn’t want this one.”
He added: “Should they get it stripped for what the owners have done? Yeah maybe, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable accepting it.”
