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Paul Scholes has doubled down on the view that Declan Rice is 'not his type' of midfielder. The player-turned-pundit recently received criticism for believing that Sandro Tonali is better than the Arsenal man. "I get slagged off for this," Scholes said while appearing as a guest on episode 100 of The Overlap's Stick to Football podcast . "I did a top five the other week, and I didn't put people like [Moises] Caicedo and Declan Rice, because I like a different type of midfielder. "I like a Vitinha at PSG , I think he's brilliant - he's amazing. I thought [Alexis] Mac Allister last year, at Liverpool , was brilliant; now he's not started great this year." The Manchester United legend explained: "I like that more, not so much an attacking midfielder, but that more controlling one who can do a bit of everything. Not just the defensive one who just gets around it and might score the odd goal here and there, I like the more progressive type." When asked about his ideal England midfield, Scholes said: "[Jude] Bellingham has to be in there just because of his goals, ain't he? Not just for his goals, he's a good player. "I'm trying to think of a midfield player, but my mind's gone blank. I know there's Declan Rice, and people say, 'you didn't have Declan Rice in your top five,' because he's not my type of midfield player." Scholes made his preference for Tonali over Rice known during The Overlap Fan Debate earlier this month. "I think he's better than Rice," Scholes said when asked about the Newcastle United midfielder. "I really like Rice, don't get me wrong, I think he's got everything. Sometimes he takes a few too many touches of the ball and tries to look a bit more stylish than necessary. "He can do everything, but I don't think he does it enough. I prefer Tonali, but they're both good players." On Stick to Football , Scholes said: "I don't think we [England] have that type of controlling midfield player now that can do a bit of everything. We haven't got a Vitinha, we haven't got a Toni Kroos or a [Luka] Modric from them days, I just don't think we have that. "A while ago, Jack Wilshere was probably the closest to being that type, but obviously, a load of injuries and stuff stopped him. I just don't think we've got that type, who has that game intelligence, of when to slow it down, when to fizz it into a centre-forward, I just don't think there's that intelligence around." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
