01 January 2023 , 11:09
563
0
Paul Scholes has urged Erik ten Hag to go and strengthen his forward line in January - and also raised concerns about Manchester United's capabilities with Luke Shaw at centre-back.
The Red Devils secured their fifth successive win in all competitions with a narrow 1-0 success over Wolves on Saturday afternoon thanks to Marcus Rashford's second-half strike. It was a dogged performance from United, who weren't at their best but got the job done as Rashford struck his 11th of the campaign despite starting on the bench.
Rashford was dropped for the trip to Molineux after he overslept and was late for a team meeting as Ten Hag laid down the letter of the law to the 25-year-old ace. However, after a below-par first-half performance from replacement Alejandro Garnacho, Rashford came on at half-time as United searched for a winner.
And the lacklustre Red Devils found the decisive goal in the 76th minute through the England international, who powered through before coolly slotting beyond Jose Sa. However, ex-United midfielder Scholes was a little worried about the lack of firepower in the United squad and also highlighted concerns over their defence.
Scholes told BT Sport: "I think they look an exciting team again. The best teams have the best forwards, at the moment they don’t have the best forwards, they’ve got very good forwards but I keep going back to the bench, they haven’t got those players who change a game, the football’s been good to watch.
Marcel Sabitzer completes Man Utd transfer after last-minute deadline day dash
Do Manchester United need to sign another forward in January? Let us know in the comments below!
Erik ten Hag and Marcus Rashford (Getty Images)"Casemiro and Eriksen have made a huge difference, there’s a real bit of quality with Fernandes in front of them. The back four I still think they can improve, we’ll see in a couple of weeks against City can you see Luke Shaw playing centre-half then, I’m not sure you can but I think things are promising, fourth in the league and hopefully we can go secure a Champions League place."
United are currently without Lisandro Martinez, who helped Argentina win the World Cup on December 18 and has been out in his homeland celebrating the success. Meanwhile, Raphael Varane, who started for France in that game, returned to the XI to face Wolves as he partnered Shaw in a back-two, leaving Victor Lindelof and Harry Maguire on the bench.
The result meant United moved into the Champions League places for the first time this season and Ten Hag was delighted with his side, although the performance wasn't the most vintage. He said: "We made a good step today - first time we are in top four but it means nothing. We have to win every game. We want to try and win something. It depends on hard work from everyone."