PAUL SCHOLES cast a coy figure after letting slip that a Manchester United icon held talks with Rangers.
The Scottish giants are looking for their next manager after sacking Russell Martin after just 123 days in charge and one win from seven Scottish Premiership matches.
A whole host of names have been linked to the job.
Steven Gerrard was the early frontrunner for the position and held “constructive” discussions in London over the Ibrox post.
However, his shock withdrawal from the running opened the door for a host of other names.
The likes of Sean Dyche, former Sheffield Wednesday boss Danny Rohl, Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna and ex-Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl have all been linked.
United icon Michael Carrick, who is out of a job since being sacked by Middlesbrough in June, has also been reported to be on the club’s list of potential managers.
However, Scholes revealed one of his mates had held talks with Rangers.
While the Premier League legend did not name them, fellow Class of 92′ star Nicky Butt revealed who the mystery contender might be.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast, Scholes said: “I was actually with a lad the other night who told me he was actually going to meet Rangers.
“I’m not sure if he did but his name’s not been mentioned. I think he told me in confidence so I’m not going to tell you. I don’t think he was going for it.
“They contacted him and he was going to meet him in London the day after.”
Butt replied: “Oh, I know who you mean.”
Co-host Paddy McGuinness asked if it was a manager currently in a job, to which Scholes replied: “No.”
Asked by Butt whether it was a former United boss, Scholes said: “No comment.”
Butt sarcastically said: “Did he score the winner in the Champions League final.”
Scholes replied again by saying no comment, adding: “But funnily enough, his name’s not been mentioned.”
Butt replied: “[It’s] Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] you’re talking about, aren’t you?”
Scholes, who took a drink from his tea mug, repeated: “No, no comment.”
Solskjaer is out of work since being sacked by Turkish side Besiktas last August after the club failed to make it into the Champions League through the qualifiers.
The 52-year-old managed United between December 2018 and November 2021.
A candidate for the Rangers job, due to Scholes not explicitly naming them, could even be Ryan Giggs, who managed United on a caretaker basis following the sacking of David Moyes.
His last managerial gig was in November 2020, when his tenure as Wales boss was cut short by assault charges levelled against him, before he officially stepped down from the role in 2022 ahead of his trial.
The jury for the original trial was unable to reach a verdict before Giggs was cleared when the Crown Prosecution Service withdrew charges with Kate Greville unwilling to give evidence in the retrial in the following year.
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