Mirror Football
October 14, 2026
Former Manchester United star Paul Scholes has doubled down on being more than happy to pick up another Premier League medal after Manchester City were found guilty of breaking the division's financial rules. The former midfielder's stance is in stark contrast to that of his United team-mate Wayne Rooney, who doesn't believe they deserve it.
City were found guilty of 114 breaches between 2009 and 2018 and pipped Manchester United to the Premier League title on goal difference in 2012. United thought they had won the league with victory at the Stadium of Light before discovering City sealed a late comeback against Queens Park Rangers thanks to Sergio Aguero's famous goal.
While City have appealed the Independent Commission's verdict and maintain their innocence, the club's rivals are waiting with bated breath to learn what sanction will be imposed. They could receive a fine, points deduction or even be expelled from the division.
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There is also a possibility City lose their titles, though the chances of the runners-up being promoted to champions instead appears remote for the moment. But Scholes, who has 11 Premier League titles to his name, would happily add another medal to his collection.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad & The Football, sponsored by Midnite, Scholes emphatically responded to Paddy McGuinness' assertion that he wouldn't want the title.
“Why not?" said Scholes. F*****g yeah. I only played 14 times somewhere in the last six months of the season. But yeah, I would take it.
"We lost on goal difference that year. Do you not think the rest of our team, our teammates, the manager and the staff are working their bollocks off all year to try and win the league? And just because a team did it wrongly, cheated, that we wouldn’t want it?”
Scholes previously described himself as greedy for more silverware. “Keep hearing ex-teammates saying they want trophies taking off them [City] but don’t want their medals,” Scholes wrote on his Instagram story.
“F*** that, I’m a greedy b****** I want my medal”.
One of those team-mates was Rooney, who was asked whether he would accept a retrospective medal by Match of the Day host Kelly Cates
"It’s difficult," he said. "I look at it from the players’ point of view. I’m assuming all the players didn’t know what was going on.
"They went onto the football pitch and won the league, while we finished second. We didn’t finish first. Why would we want a medal for finishing second?"
Rooney previously admitted he wouldn't be comfortable accepting a winner's medal. "I have heard Rio has come out saying about getting another Premier League medal... I wouldn’t really feel comfortable accepting another Premier League medal, if I’m being honest," said Rooney on the Stick To United podcast.
"I don’t think we deserve it, we didn’t do enough that season to win the league. I think we were six or seven points clear with four or five games to go and we threw it away. I’ve seen everything that has come out over the past few days and listening to people and I was putting myself in a Man City player’s shoes.
"It might happen, they might take them [medals] away, but I wouldn’t want it [a medal] because I don’t think as a team we deserved it that year because obviously we didn’t finish first. So when I see team-mates saying I want a medal’, I’m happy with the five I’ve won. I wouldn’t want this one.
"Should they get it stripped for what the owners have done? Yeah maybe, but I wouldn’t feel comfortable accepting it."
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