Paul Scholes Tells Bruno Fernandes to ‘Keep His Mouth Shut’ After Hull Defeat Comments

Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has told club captain Bruno Fernandes that he needs to “keep his mouth shut” after the midfielder publicly criticised his side’s performance in the opening-day defeat at Hull City. Speaking on his podcast The Good, The Bad & The Football, Scholes also questioned Harry Maguire over a bizarre defensive moment that contributed to Hull’s first goal and suggested that post-match remarks from senior players had undermined manager Michael Carrick.

United lost 2-0 at the MKM Stadium on Saturday, conceding twice from set-pieces in the first half against a newly promoted side widely expected to struggle near the foot of the table. Afterwards Fernandes told reporters that his team had repeated the “same mistakes as we did last season” in away matches. “Every away game we give too much of the ball to them,” he said. “In the first 20 minutes, the goalkeeper was the one with the most touches. We needed to press more, be more aggressive, and then again we need to work on set plays and not concede these types of goals. Against these types of teams, they are waiting for that moment.”

Scholes took clear exception to the tone and timing of the criticism. “I’d be interested to know what he means by them. What mistakes were they giving away?” the former United midfielder said. “Especially when you perform the way he did as well, I think it’s probably best to keep your mouth shut. He didn’t have his best performance either.”

Shaw Comments Draw Further Fire

Scholes and co-pundit Dion Dublin also focused on remarks made by Luke Shaw, who suggested United had not prepared adequately for Hull’s threat. “It’s not us and we knew it was coming,” Shaw said after the match. “I think as a whole, as a group, collectively, we could prepare better. Especially knowing how good they are at set plays and what their dangers are.”

Scholes responded bluntly: “Luke Shaw always says something. And that’s a slight on your staff. That’s a slight on your manager. If one of your players is saying that you’d be like f***ing hell, you’d have them in on Monday morning.” Dublin argued that senior players should default to silence rather than open avenues for external criticism. “You want silence. If your skipper has to speak then he has to speak, but then you make sure he says the things that don’t open a can of worms. You just don’t give anyone any ammunition because the ammunition is there from your performance.”

Scholes drew a comparison with the standards enforced under Sir Alex Ferguson. “Those comments are not so much about respect but you speak about fear of managers and the things they’ve said, they’re a slight on the manager and staff. As a player if we did that about Sir Alex, ‘we weren’t prepared’, f***ing hell, you’d be right in and he’d probably single you out in front of the full team.”

Carrick’s Authority Challenge

Dublin suggested that Carrick’s biggest difficulty in his permanent role may be shifting from popular colleague to authoritative manager. “The friend or colleague issue that he had as an interim, the hardest thing now that he is permanent is that he is going to have to sever those connections, which I think will be hard for someone like Michael because he’s a nice bloke,” Dublin said. “But now he’s the manager he’s going to have to stop the ‘how are you doing pal’, ‘how are you doing mate’, ‘do you fancy going for a beer’. You can’t do that anymore. Now it’s I’m the manager, you’re that. Do as you’re told.”

The discussion framed the Hull defeat not only as a tactical or technical failure but as a potential early test of Carrick’s ability to impose discipline and control the dressing-room narrative.

Maguire’s Curious Defensive Moment

Scholes also highlighted a defensive lapse involving Harry Maguire in the build-up to Hull’s opening goal from a corner. Footage showed Maguire with his arms around teammate Noussair Mazraoui at the critical moment, leaving the man he was supposed to be marking, Semi Ajayi, free to head home. “The only thing I can think is that he’s lost his bearings,” Scholes said. “He’s looking at the ball, he can feel somebody in front of him, and he’s just gone like that. It doesn’t look good, does it? I’d like to hear him explain it.”

The incident added to the sense of disorganisation that defined United’s afternoon and provided critics with a vivid visual summary of the performance.

Pressure Already Building

United’s next fixture is a home meeting with another promoted side, Ipswich Town, on Sunday. The expectation will be for a response in both result and presentation. Fernandes, as captain, occupies a uniquely visible position: his willingness to speak critically after matches has previously been praised as leadership in some quarters and criticised as unhelpful in others. Scholes’s intervention makes clear which interpretation the club’s former midfielder favours when the performance itself falls short.

Whether Carrick addresses the public comments internally remains to be seen. What is already evident is that an opening-day loss to a newly promoted team has generated more than routine disappointment. It has prompted pointed criticism from one of the club’s most decorated former players, questions about the judgment of senior figures in the squad, and an early examination of the manager’s authority. For a side still assembling its identity under Carrick, the episode serves as a reminder that results and messaging are scrutinised with equal intensity at Old Trafford.