Scholes rides his luck to realise elusive goal

As the terrace anthem has it, "Paul Scholes, he scores goals". Not as often as he would like to, for either club or, especially, country, but certainly at crucial times in the FA Cup campaign that comes to a conclusion in Cardiff on Saturday. Add a gnawing sense of frustration at Manchester United's failure to make a greater impression in either the Premiership or the Champions' League this season, and Millwall have cause to keep an especially close eye on the former Oldham Athletic supporter who outshone even David Beckham in the class of '91.

As the terrace anthem has it, "Paul Scholes, he scores goals". Not as often as he would like to, for either club or, especially, country, but certainly at crucial times in the FA Cup campaign that comes to a conclusion in Cardiff on Saturday. Add a gnawing sense of frustration at Manchester United's failure to make a greater impression in either the Premiership or the Champions' League this season, and Millwall have cause to keep an especially close eye on the former Oldham Athletic supporter who outshone even David Beckham in the class of '91.

Saturday's opponents already harbour a justifiable sense of grievance that the occasionally volatile ginger-nut will be on the pitch at all. Dennis Wise and Ray Wilkins were at Old Trafford a week ago to see him cautioned against Chelsea for a clear dive and then let off for an equally blatant late tackle on his England rival Frank Lampard after the referee, Steve Bennett, seemed initially to be reaching for the yellow card again. Bennett generously stayed his hand; Sir Alex Ferguson could not afford to offer clemency, and instead of a red card that would have ruled him out of the final, Scholes saw his number being held up on the touchline after a mere 36 minutes' play.

Initial annoyance, badly concealed, was typical of the competitive instincts that make him a favourite of both Ferguson and Sven Goran Eriksson. Equally characteristic was his frank confession on Friday of having attempted to con the referee into thinking Claude Makelele had tripped him in the penalty area: "I just ran into him and tried to make it look as though there was a bit of contact. The referee saw right through me. I didn't get the ball so I had to try something. I hadn't played for a few weeks, so to come back and only play for half an hour was a bit disappointing, but it was my own fault. I wasn't pleased, but it was probably the right thing to do. I'd been booked for the dive and it just went out of my mind because it was a dive and not a tackle."

While many will deplore the casual acceptance of cheating, being banned would have been hard to take for a player who missed the European Cup final leg of the 1999 Treble because, like Roy Keane, he had picked up one yellow card too many. "It's disappointing to miss any final, any game, and that was a massive one to miss. It's nice that the other lads have done it, but you feel a bit subdued, don't celebrate as much as you would, though you've contributed a little bit."

His own little contributions down the years run to six Premiership titles and the FA Cup finals of 1995 (losing to Everton at the end of his first season after a brief appearance as substitute), 1996 (when substituting for Andy Cole in the win over Liverpool) and 1999 (scoring the second goal to beat Newcastle). While United are perceived to have an ambivalent attitude to the competition because of their withdrawal the following year, Scholes insists it still has a place in the heart of anyone brought up on English football: "It's a massive tournament and every player wants to win it. It's another major medal. My first memory as a lad was Norman Whiteside scoring against Everton [in the 1985 final]. I don't know whether that inspired me, but it was probably every kid's dream to play in a final at Wembley."

When United were in trouble away to Aston Villa in the third round back in January, Scholes came up with two match-winning goals. He chipped in with another in the derby victory over Manchester City in round five and, returning to Villa Park in the semi-final, finished off the fine move that beat Arsenal and prevented any emulation of United's Treble five years earlier. He ended last season with 20 goals in all competitions, including six from as many games on the run-in, and is up to 14 this time. Then there was the one that got away against Porto at Old Trafford, when a referee's assistant wrongly ruled him offside to deny United a potentially decisive 2-0 lead.

But a three-year international drought from his past 25 England games is one of football's lingering mysteries. "Not scoring for England does bother me," he admits, "because I think I am in the team to score goals from midfield. I've not had a lot of chances, but I'm hoping that if I keep getting picked it will change soon."

There is every chance of that, as Eriksson continues to reject the more prolific Lampard's claims to the most forward position in England's midfield diamond. Yet it would hardly be surprising if Scholes's confidence was suffering at international level. Two years ago he worried - quite unnecessarily as it turned out - that poor form might cost him a place at the World Cup finals, and even club performances this season have not always been up to his high standards.

"All round, my game's not been great," he admits, while declining - either through fear of the manager or genuine conviction - to blame a constant shuffling between attack and a variety of midfield roles. "You have to do your best in different positions. It's hard to get going and get used to one position, and I've never had a [full] season in the same one. I don't care as long as I have the chance to play and score some goals."

There is one more chance this club season, which would not redeem it completely but would at least prevent a second campaign in recent times when United have finished without a significant bauble to show for their efforts. "We just haven't been good enough in the League, and when you see another team winning it, it hurts. Every time you lose a couple of games, you hear that everyone's for sale and the team are finished. But everyone will come back next season more determined than ever."

What of the underdogs and the challenge they present? "Millwall are the type of team we've struggled against this year, we've lost to a lot of the lower teams. Dennis Wise will try to wind me up, I think he's done that every game he's played. But he's got talent as well and done a great job for Millwall."

Paul Scholes, he scores goals, and at 29 he may not have many more opportunities to do so in an FA Cup final. Millwall, beware.

ONE-NIL TO THE UNDERDOGS

1973: Leeds United 0 Sunderland 1 (Porterfield, 31) Having so many players produce the game of their lives on the same day was the key to what remains the greatest Cup final upset of them all. Leeds fielded 11 internationals, Sunderland, sixth in the Second Division, none. But Bob Stokoe had heroes like Jim Montgomery, with his astonishing double save from Trevor Cherry and Peter Lorimer, man-of-the-match Dave Watson, the goalscorer Ian Porterfield and right-back Dick Malone, who played Eddie Gray out of the game.

1976: Manchester Utd 0 Southampton 1 (Stokes, 83)

For Second Division underdogs to win, the favourites must be below par, which was what happened to Tommy Docherty's exciting young United side. Southampton's Lawrie McMenemy had wily old hands in Mick Channon, Peter Osgood, Jim McCalliog and Peter Rodrigues. It was a dull game until McCalliog, ex-United, sent Bobby Stokes through to score.

1980: Arsenal 0 West Ham Utd 1 (Brooking, 14) John Lyall's West Ham, seventh in the Second Division, undermined a weary Arsenal (70 games that season) by playing five men across midfield, one of whom, Paul Allen, did an energetic marking job on Liam Brady while becoming the youngest of all Cup finalists at 17. Trevor Brooking, whose headed goals were as rare as Thierry Henry's, won the game by nodding in Stuart Pearson's cross-shot.

1988: Liverpool 0 Wimbledon 1 (Sanchez, 36) Psychology can be an important weapon. Vinnie Jones, refusing to admit to any inferiority complex, took the lead by screaming abuse at Liverpool's players in the tunnel, then launching into an appalling first tackle on Steve McMahon. Liverpool never quite recovered, succumbing to Lawrie Sanchez's header from a set-piece and Dave Beasant's historic penalty save from John Aldridge. Steve Tongue