Update: Man United star called out after trying to confront Paul Scholes on training ground News

Manchester United legend Paul Scholes revealed that a member of Ruben Amorim’s squad phoned him up after taking offence to something he’d said about him on punditry duty

The unnamed Manchester United player who tried to confront Paul Scholes has been labelled “fragile” by Simon Jordan.

Since hanging up his boots in 2013, Scholes has carved out a successful career as a straight-talking pundit, especially when it comes to his former club. The Red Devils legend has never shied away from giving blunt assessments, though his candour apparently landed him in hot water recently.

Speaking on The Overlap Fan Debats, Scholes revealed that a member of Ruben Amorim’s squad phoned him directly after taking offence to something he’d said. The player even asked to meet Scholes at United’s training ground for a face-to-face confrontation. “I said, ‘Of course, no problem,’ and gave him my number – but he never followed up,” the 50-year-old recalled.

Reacting to the story on talkSPORT, former Crystal Palace chairman Jordan said the exchange epitomised the delicate nature of modern football. “We live in a society where people are too fragile and not resilient enough,” he said.

“There’s something admirable about people who can say, ‘Well that criticism was fair and I’m going to approach it in that fashion’, rather than being a child about it and saying any criticism is out of bounds.”

Danny Murphy agreed, saying: “Top Premier League clubs and top players, generally, have built up a wall of resilience over years to get to the top. Most of them are pretty robust, but there are one or two who you think, oh come on, don’t be so fragile.”

It comes following Scholes’ assertion that modern footballers are “too touchy”. He said: “What we say [as pundits] shouldn’t affect a player. The only people that should affect the players is what the manager thinks, the coaching staff, and their team-mates. Whatever is said on TV should be taken with a pinch of salt.

“I’m not even sure how many players these days watch football and watch what we’re saying. There was one United player who obviously took a bit of offence to what I said, but you just deal with it. If he thinks he needs an explanation or a meeting over a tea or coffee, I’d be happy to give it.”

Scholes didn’t name the player he’d offended or specify which remarks had sparked the reaction, but Murphy suspects his former England team-mate may have gone too far with a heat-of-the-moment barb.

“Sometimes in the moment in our job, especially when you’re doing co-commentary, you do find yourself falling into a little trap or getting a bit over the top with your passion or being overly critical because you’re frustrated at watching someone, and you wish you could have drawn it back,” the former Liverpool star said.

United have faced intense criticism this season as they edge toward what could be their worst domestic campaign in over half a century. They’ve already suffered 13 Premier League defeats – their highest-ever total in a single season since the competition began – and are just five placed above the relegation zone.

However, they have the opportunity to end the campaign on a high, with Europa League glory within touching distance. They face Lyon in the first leg of their quarter-final clash on Thursday before playing the Ligue 1 giants at Old Trafford next week.