Paul Scholes is still unsure what Joshua Zirkzee brings to the Man Utd team after they drew 1-1 with Arsenal in the Premier League on Sunday.

The Red Devils took the lead against the run of play on the stroke of half-time with Bruno Fernandes converting a wonderful free-kick to put Ruben Amorim’s team ahead at the interval.

A wonderful finish from the edge of the box from Declan Rice saw second-placed Arsenal level with 16 minutes left on the clock but neither side could get a winner.

Man Utd had a number of very good chances in the second half to make sure they took all three points but they failed to convert.

Zirkzee and Rasmus Hojlund have taken plenty of criticism this season with duo scoring just five Premier League goals between them.

Netherlands international Zirkzee did score the Man Utd goal in a 1-1 draw at Real Sociedad in midweek but, after watching the Dutchman against Arsenal, Man Utd legend Scholes remains unconvinced by the striker.

After the match, Scholes told Premier League Productions: “Both teams are in desperate need of a striker.

“Zirkzee I thought was a little bit disappointing today. I’m not sure he’s a number nine or a number ten.

“I’m not really sure what Zirkzee brings to the team. Rasmus Hojlund is obviously still having his issues but both teams are crying out for attacking players.”

MORE MAN UTD COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 Manchester United draw shows Mikel Arteta’s robotic approach is holding Arsenal back
👉 Premier League prize money calculated: Manchester United unfairly high in earnings table
👉 Xavi ‘wants to take two’ Barcelona players on his ‘new adventure’ at Man Utd

Fernandes was the hero again at Old Trafford on Sunday and Man Utd boss Amorim wants the rest of his players to be more like the Portugal international.

Amorim said: “I think any coach when he wants to bring players, he expects the best, but sometimes they have to adapt and sometimes you have luck with the character of the player or not.

“Even with all the investigation that all the coaches do before signing players. What I can say is that we need more Brunos. That is clear.

“Not just the quality, the character, not some mistakes, but the character that he has, the availability in this league, is so important and he’s so decisive with the ball and without the ball.”

And Amorim thought his side were unlucky not to beat Arsenal, the Man Utd boss added: “If you look at the chances and then look at the game, Arsenal had more possession, but we try to play the game in a low block.

“So it’s hard to say that we deserve it as Arsenal also tried to win the game. But, if you look at the chances, I think we were quite close to winning the game. David Raya did really well to defend his goal and, sometimes, if the ball is 10 centimetres a little bit to the side, it can change a game.

“We were waiting for a mistake from the opponents, but we tried to win the game. We tried to find a way to beat a very good team and showed that today.”

According to reports, Chelsea are ‘preparing to step up their efforts’ to sign Manchester United academy product Kobbie Mainoo.

The England international enjoyed a sensational breakout season for Man Utd during the 2023/24 campaign as he was a shining light for his boyhood club.

Mainoo grabbed five goals and three assists for the Red Devils before he shone for England at last summer’s European Championships.

The centre-midfielder has endured a stop-start season in 2024/25 as he’s only made 15 Premier League starts and he was heavily linked with a shock exit in January.

Man Utd – second in our Premier League net spend table – are strapped for cash and need to sell pricey assets to raise funds for a major squad rebuild under head coach Ruben Amorim. Their poor performances this season leave most of their squad at risk of being offloaded and Mainoo would be a pure profit sale.

READ: 16 Conclusions on Man United 1-1 Arsenal: Arteta’s obsession, Amorim’s compromise and Neville’s wall

The Red Devils reportedly asked for around £70m for their academy product in January, and Chelsea were in talks with their Premier League rivals over a move that did not end up going through.

Still, Mainoo could still leave Man Utd this summer and a report from Caught Offside claims Chelsea are ‘eyeing’ the midfielder as they considers ‘selling’ Romeo Lavia.

The Blues have reportedly ‘cast doubts’ over Lavia as they are ‘concerned’ about his injury record and they are ‘preparing to step up their pursuit’ of Mainoo.

‘Mainoo has been engaged in talks with the Red Devils over a contract renewal, but so far, the two parties have not been able to agree on terms. Despite his rapid rise, he remains one of the lowest-paid members of the squad, earning just £20,000 per week.

MORE MAN UTD COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 Scholes still has no idea what ‘disappointing’ Man Utd star ‘brings to the team’
👉 Xavi ‘wants to take two’ Barcelona players on his ‘new adventure’ at Man Utd
👉 Premier League prize money calculated: Manchester United unfairly high in earnings table

‘His representatives are pushing for a significant pay rise to around £180,000 per week, which is an increase that could complicate Man United’s efforts to keep him, especially with Financial Fair Play restrictions looming.

‘Chelsea, meanwhile, are keeping a close eye on the situation, as they did over the summer – and particularly given their concerns over Lavia.’

The report has also commented on Mainoo’s transfer ‘preference’.

‘A move wouldn’t be straightforward. As has been reported elsewhere, his wage demands would put him in line with Cole Palmer in Chelsea’s pay structure.

‘Mainoo, who turns 20 in April, has two years remaining on his current contract. While Man United value the England international at around £75 million, they could be willing to cash in if the right offer arrives.

‘Negotiations over a new contract have been ongoing for some time, but no agreement has been reached.

‘Mainoo’s preference would be a move to Spain or Italy, rather than a Premier League club. But if Chelsea were to meet his wage demands, it’s thought a breakthrough could be reached.’

Gary Neville couldn’t believe Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s assessment of the job Ruben Amorim has done at Manchester United so far, as the co-owner engaged in some “salary bill” whataboutery.

Ratcliffe took control of football operations at United in February 2024 and his arrival has if anything seen a downturn in results, first under Erik ten Hag and now under Ruben Amorim, who has failed to lift his side from 14th in the Premier League table having taken charge in November.

In his most recent set of interviews, Ratcliffe named five United players in a “not good enough or overpaid” admission and revealed “a couple of errors” in his year at the helm while claiming the club would be “bust by Christmas” without his controversial cost-cutting strategies.

READ MORE: Ranking Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 17 Man Utd f***-ups: 3) Ruben Amorim, 4) Dan Ashworth, 8) Kath Phipps

And in an interview conducted by Gary Neville for Sky Sports, Ratcliffe admitted they made a mistake in sticking with Ten Hag.

“It was too early for us to make a big decision in reality,” Ratcliffe said.

“We hadn’t been together as a team for very long. It was just a matter of weeks and it’s quite a big decision, isn’t it? And also, it’s quite difficult. It was quite difficult to extract in that season when we arrived, Erik’s performance from the structure around him.

“Obviously the structure around [Amorim] now is completely different. There’s a really strong relationship and a really strong support culture for Ruben. Jason and Ruben talk to each other two or three times a day, Omar speaks to Ruben every day, every time I go to the match I speak to Ruben.

“But it was quite difficult to see what environment Erik was operating in. Was it, in other words, was the erratic performance a function of Erik, or was it a function of the organisation? And we couldn’t really get to the bottom of answering that question with certainty, I suppose, so we gave Erik the benefit of the doubt.”

Asked by Neville if he regrets that now, Ratcliffe said: “Yeah, it was the wrong decision. We made the wrong decision. It was an error. So yeah, I suppose in that sense I regret it.

“I think there was some extenuating or mitigating circumstances in having made that decision, but at the end of the day it was the wrong decision, so hands up, me of course on that one.”

MORE MAN UTD COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 Ratcliffe names five Man Utd players in ‘not good enough or overpaid’ admission
👉 Man Utd star ‘will leave’ Old Trafford in summer and ‘already has a new team’ lined up
👉 Man Utd star ‘eyed’ by Chelsea to replace one star ‘concerning’ Maresca with ‘preference’ revealed

United’s only remaining chance of silverware is the Europa League, with that gong also granting entry into the Champions League next season.

The second leg of their last-16 tie with Real Sociedad is on Thursday at Old Trafford after the first leg finished 1-1.

But Amorim has been criticised for his lack of impact since his arrival at the club, with United rooted in the bottom half of the Premier League having been dumped out of both cup competitions.

Speaking the day after Man Utd’s 1-1 draw at home to Arsenal in the Premier League, Ratcliffe backed the work of Amorim so far.

“I think Ruben has done an excellent job,” said Ratcliffe.

“I really like Ruben. I think in the circumstances… I mean he arrived mid-season, he didn’t have time to train his players in the way in which he wants to play, he inherited a squad which he’s had no influence on, and the squad isn’t necessarily designed for the way in which he plays football, and English isn’t his natural language, and he’s never played in the Premier League before, and he’s managing the biggest club in the world, and it’s a tough place, and he’s a young guy.

“If you take all of that into consideration, I think he’s done a remarkably good job.”

When asked by Neville what parts of the job he is referring to, Ratcliffe said: “I think what he’s got out of the players that he’s got available, I think he’s done well with,”

Neville was taken aback. “Do you?!” he said.

“If I look at the salary bill of the squad that’s available to him, that salary bill is not the salary bill of Manchester City or Liverpool, it’s a fraction of it.

“If you look at the salary bill of the players that are available to him that are not injured, or not out on loan, because we’ve got, you know, we’ve got Antony out on loan, we’ve got [Jadon] Sancho out on loan, we’ve got [Marcus] Rashford out on loan, we’ve got Mason Mount who hasn’t really played in the last two seasons, we’ve got Luke Shaw who hasn’t played in the last two seasons.

“So if you modify our salary bill for the players that are not available to Ruben, then our salary bill ranks us about, you know, middling, second half of the table. We’re sort of level with the likes of a Nottingham Forest or Everton, not a Manchester City one.

“That salary bill, if you look at that salary bill, is probably about £130m, and we’re talking about Liverpool who’s got a salary bill of £200m, Manchester City have got a salary bill of £300m, so that’s the squad that Ruben’s playing with.”

Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe admits “some are not good enough and some probably are overpaid” at Old Trafford when asked about five under-performing stars.

Ratcliffe took control of football operations at United just over a year ago and his arrival has if anything seen a downturn in results, first under Erik ten Hag and now under Ruben Amorim, who has failed to lift his side from 14th in the Premier League table having taken charge in November.

The British billionaire has been heavily criticised for his cost-cutting strategies off the pitch, which have resulted in around 400 members of club staff losing their jobs amid rising ticket prices that have led to fan protests.

READ MORE: Ranking Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s 17 Man Utd f***-ups: 3) Ruben Amorim, 4) Dan Ashworth, 8) Kath Phipps

But he insists that while many of the decisions are “unpopular”” they are necessary given the club’s financial woes, with Ratcliffe lamenting the fact that the club still has payments to make on players signed before he took control.

He cited the £17m they still need to make for Sancho, who was signed for £73m from Borussia Dortmund in 2021 but hasn’t kicked a ball for United (other than in the Community Shield) since August 2023, returning on loan to Dortmund before heading to Chelsea in the summer.

Ratcliffe told BBC Sport: “If you look at the players we are buying this summer, that we didn’t buy, we’re buying Antony, we’re buying Casemiro, we’re buying Onana, we’re buying Hojlund, we’re buying Sancho. These are all things from the past, whether we like it or not, we’ve inherited those things and have to sort that out.

“For Sancho, who now plays for Chelsea and we pay half his wages, we’re paying £17m to buy him in the summer.”

MORE MAN UTD COVERAGE ON F365…
👉 Robbie Savage’s Winners & Losers: Liverpool seal Prem title as Arteta decision costs Arsenal again
👉 Man Utd star ‘will leave’ Old Trafford in summer and ‘already has a new team’ lined up
👉 Man Utd star ‘eyed’ by Chelsea to replace one star ‘concerning’ Maresca with ‘preference’ revealed

Antony is also out on loan and loving his time at Real Betis having joined for £81.5m from Ajax in the summer of 2022, when Casemiro also joined from Real Madrid for £70m, while Hojlund cost them £64m when he arrived with £47m Onana a year later.

“It takes time for us to move away from the past into a new place in the future,” Ratcliffe added.

When asked whether he was suggesting those players were not good enough for Manchester United, he said: “Some are not good enough and some probably are overpaid, but for us to mould the squad that we are fully responsible for, and accountable for, will take time.

“We’ve got this period of transformation where we move from the past to the future.

“There are some great players in the squad as we know, the captain is a fabulous footballer. We definitely need Bruno, he’s a fantastic footballer.”