Paul Scholes infographic: Stats show why he ruled for Manchester United

We've crunched years of Premier League data to reveal why 'Sat Nav' was such a key man at Old Trafford...

As one of the finest midfielders of his generation Paul Scholes was not big on fuss. He let his feet do the talking, magnificently, for Manchester United in the Premier League.

The man known as ‘Sat Nav’ may not care but the Paddy Power Blog saw it fitting to commission this Paul Scholes infographic, a collaboration between Paddy Power’s design studio and the Press Association’s Match Story, to celebrate his signing for Paddy Power as a World Cup columnist. It charts his contribution to Manchester United’s incredible success under Alex Ferguson.

Paul Scholes’ Premier League stats at Manchester United:

Here’s what some football legends have said about Scholes…

“If he was playing with me, I would have scored so many more.”
– Pele

 

“My toughest opponent? Scholes of Manchester. He is the complete midfielder.”
– Zinedine Zidane

 

“I’m star-struck when I see Paul Scholes because you never see him. On the pitch you can’t catch him. Off the pitch he disappears.”
– Luis Figo

 

“I’m not the best, Paul Scholes is.”
– Edgar Davids

 

“In the last 15 to 20 years the best central midfielder that I have seen – the most complete – is Scholes. I have spoken with Xabi Alonso about this many times. Scholes is a spectacular player who has everything. He can play the final pass, he can score, he is strong, he never gets knocked off the ball and he doesn’t give possession away. If he had been Spanish then maybe he would have been valued more.”
– Xavi

A note on infographic data

From his debut season, 1993/94, to 1999/00, PA collected goal and appearance data only. From 2000/01 onwards we also collected match event data (shots, assists etc). All data is official DataCo. Design by Alison Sheridan with Eleonore Kellenberger at Paddy Power.