The Game Made Beautiful Again - Zenith2k

The red tide is washing in again. Manchester United has found a new belief in itself because of one man. Paul Scholes' reawakened genius has invigorated a squad which was in danger of slumbering through another season without achieving its obvious potential. Scholes has allowed the Old Trafford faithful to dream again. Without him the unfolding United fairytale would have no animator.

But the diminutive ginger master is not the only individual to have drawn enthused responses from the Stretford End this season. Christiano Ronaldo, Patrice Evra, Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs and even the previously maligned Michael Carrick have shown the ability that a side destined for greatness must exhibit. Coupled with an unyielding back line including the ferocious Nemanja Vidic and the sublime Rio Ferdinand, this makes for an imperious side with a solid foundation. So far this season, Manchester United's pursuit of the title has been relentless.

Scholes' hunger to distribute possession together with an unparalleled vision for incisive passing has made him United's player of the season. Whilst Ronaldo has been the protagonist, Scholes has been the director; the reason for the growing belief of the players and the fans. The fervour with which he has set about demolishing opposing teams has instilled in his compatriots a will to win missing since Roy Keane was in his prime at the club.

In fact Scholes' recent resurgence has been partly due to the emergence of Michael Carrick as the hub of the team. Carrick isn't a player with the raw emotion characteristic of past United midfielders, but his neat, intelligent play has led to a previously lacking assuredness in the centre. Carrick's constant supply of possession to Scholes has been a major factor in the midfield renaissance.

Key signings Vidic, Evra and Park have proved their worth. Along with the maturation of Rooney and Ronaldo they have banished the demons of a transfer record which had been, in recent seasons, an embarrassment to Ferguson. The new squad he has nurtured may now be nearing its peak.

This mixture of experience and youth is reminiscent of the '99 treble-winning side and of Ferguson's first great team born in the early nineties. The shrewdness of Scholes and Giggs is the foil to the raw desire of Ronaldo and Rooney. Where Ronaldo has been the virtuoso of the team, Rooney has been the essence. Rooney's refusal to let a game pass him by has been the beating heart of the United collective. He gives his all for the side in every game and possesses a hunger for his trade which makes him the model professional. But it is to Scholes they should both pay homage, for this duo has enjoyed a new lease of life under the cohesion he has brought back to the team.

Scholes is heading towards a number of awards and should receive the global recognition he rightly deserves. There is no single man to whom one team has owed so much this season.