Paul Scholes' Bold Manchester United Transfer Recommendations
Paul Scholes has rarely been shy about what Manchester United need. This time, his prescription is blunt: tear into the heart of the defence and build it around a proven, battle-hardened centre-back – even if he comes with a streak of chaos.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast, the former United and England midfielder nailed his colours to a surprising mast: Christian Romero.
“I think they sorted out the forward areas last summer but I think they probably need two centre backs,” Scholes said, before dropping the name that will raise eyebrows in north London and Manchester alike. “You might laugh at this and I might get stick for this, but I would go and sign Christian Romero from Tottenham.”
This is not a polite, theoretical suggestion. Scholes framed Romero as exactly the profile United have lacked since their last great defensive pairing faded: a centre-half with elite international pedigree, hardened on the biggest stage.
“They’re talking about 30 or 40 million quid for a player who has been centre half in a World Cup final,” he argued. For Scholes, that kind of experience is non-negotiable if United are serious about closing the gap at the top.
He did not gloss over Romero’s reputation.
“I know he’s a nutter, I know he’s got disciplinary issues,” Scholes admitted, before flipping the narrative. That edge, that volatility, is something he believes Michael Carrick could harness rather than fear. “He can be a very good centre half and someone that Michael Carrick could really calm down.”
The criticism of United’s current options was stark. Scholes made it clear he sees a back line short of the required standard and in urgent need of surgery.
“I think they’re desperate for a centre-back, the current ones aren’t good enough,” he said, underlining just how drastic he feels the overhaul must be.
But in Scholes’ mind, the rebuild does not stop at centre-back. Once the defence is addressed, his gaze moves straight into midfield.
Having seen United miss out on Sandro Tonali, who chose Tottenham, Scholes believes the club should already be deep into negotiations for another rising star: Adam Wharton of Crystal Palace.
Wharton’s stock has soared after a remarkable spell in which he helped Palace lift both the FA Cup and the Conference League. Composed on the ball, intelligent without it, and comfortable dictating play from deep, he has quickly become one of the most coveted young midfielders in the country.
Scholes sees him as tailor-made for United’s engine room.
Wharton, he argued, would be the perfect partner in a midfield pivot, offering control and balance in an area where United have veered between chaos and compromise.
Yet there is a major obstacle. Palace have slapped an £85m price tag on the playmaker, a figure that makes any move ambitious at best and, for some clubs, prohibitive.
Scholes, though, cannot understand why United are not already testing that resolve.
Continuing on the podcast, he said: “I can’t believe they’re not trying to buy Adam Wharton. Sandro Tonali would have been my first-choice but with him gone now, Adam Wharton looks perfect to me.”
Two signings. One snarling World Cup finalist to anchor the defence, one elegant young playmaker to knit the midfield together. In Scholes’ view, that is the spine United must chase.
The question now is whether those inside Old Trafford see the same urgency – and whether they are prepared to pay the price to match his ambition.
