Paul Scholes names two Manchester United players who 'need a rest' after Real Betis win

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes believes Luke Shaw and Casemiro would benefit from a breather following Thursday night's 4-1 win over Real Betis in the Europa League at Old Trafford.

United took a giant stride towards the quarter-finals of the competition with a convincing victory over the La Liga outfit in the first leg of their last-16 showdown. Second-half goals from Antony, Bruno Fernandes and Wout Weghorst extended the Reds' unbeaten run at home to 20 matches, after Ayoze Perez had cancelled out Marcus Rashford's opener before the break.

Manager Erik ten Hag got just the kind of response he would have been hoping for from his players following their 7-0 drubbing against Liverpool at Anfield four days earlier. Much to everyone's surprise, however, the Dutchman named the same line-up that started against Jurgen Klopp's side and it was a decision that paid off.

READ MORE: Erik ten Hag claims Antony improved six things vs Real Betis

However, such is the volume of games that United have had to combat in four different competitions in recent months, some players did appear to tire towards the end of the contest. The likes of Shaw, Rashford and Antony were all substituted before full-time.

And for Reds legend Scholes, Shaw and Casemiro expressed signs that they could benefit from a rare rest.

"I don't think Ten Hag likes making lots of changes," Scholes told BT Sport. "He likes players having rhythm, but with the schedule and the amount of games they've played, some of these players need a rest now.

"I thought Shaw looked like he needed a rest tonight, Casemiro looks like he needs a rest.

"They can give a few young players a taste of European football [next week] and hopefully that will stand them in