Scholes believes that neither Manchester United nor Chelsea can mount a strong challenge for the Premier League title this season. Chelsea allowed their best midfielder, Enzo, to leave and were too sentimental about it, when they could have blocked the deal entirely. As for Manchester United, they pose even less of a threat to Arsenal and Manchester City. Their defensive standards fall short, and conceding goals will be commonplace. Failing to strengthen the defense is tantamount to surrendering hope of competing for the title this season, which is not befitting Manchester United.

Scholes said on a podcast: "I don't think Chelsea are title contenders. They still have a lot of work to do."

"Consider this: they let Enzo go to Manchester City, and he's arguably Chelsea's best midfielder, while Caicedo still hasn't recovered from injury."

"They are now playing two full-backs in midfield. Reece James can play in midfield, but you can't expect him to carry the entire 38-game season. Gusto was also deployed in midfield against Arsenal. It's clear that Caicedo's absence has a huge impact on the team, but beyond that, I think their defense still has significant problems."

"I think Chelsea had promised Enzo and Manchester City that they would allow his transfer. But sometimes you don't have to stick to that agreement. Chelsea failed to sign their desired target from Monaco at the last minute, and after confirming the failure of that transfer, they could have blocked Enzo's departure."

"Chelsea were too sentimental about this—they could have completely stopped the deal. If you only consider your own team, look at the midfield performance against Arsenal, and you'll definitely think: 'How great would it be if Enzo could play for us today.' Sir Alex Ferguson would never do something like that. That said, we still have to commend Chelsea for keeping their word, which is rare in football."

Meanwhile, Scholes is optimistic that Manchester United can finish in the top four of the Premier League, but he emphasized that Carrick's team is not strong enough to threaten Arsenal and Manchester City. It remains to be seen whether the significantly revamped midfield will be effective, and the back four has not undergone major reconstruction for years, with defensive performance consistently unsatisfactory.

"Manchester United can make the top four, but don't expect them to compete for the title—there's no chance," Scholes said.

"It's clear that their defensive standards fall short, and conceding goals will be the norm. In terms of transfers, the team seems to be gradually strengthening position by position. Last year, they sorted out the frontline, which worked very well; this year, they are focusing on revamping the midfield, but it remains to be seen whether this will be effective. Players like Santos and Balela in the squad have potential, but we don't know how high they can develop. If these two can perform well, perhaps they can help the team improve its defensive record.

"But the back four has not undergone major reconstruction for years, and its defensive performance has been consistently unsatisfactory. I don't know how to expect this to improve on its own.

"I expect that next summer, hopefully with Carrick still in charge, the team will have had a decent season, and then they will assemble a completely new back four.

"This is almost equivalent to surrendering hope of competing for the title this season, and that's not how Manchester United should be."

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