“I nearly cried, you know when City beat QPR and we beat Sunderland, that was bad” – Manchester United legend opens up on feelings when Red Devils dramatically lost 2011-12 league title to rivals

Sergio Aguero broke the hearts of Manchester United fans in 2012
Sergio Aguero broke the hearts of Manchester United fans in 2012

Manchester United legend Paul Scholes has lifted the lid on how he felt after Manchester City dramatically beat the Red Devils to the Premier League title in 2011-12.

The final day of the 2011-12 season still boasts one of the most iconic moments in Premier League history. Manchester City and Manchester United were level on points at the start of the day and played their games with the hope of being crowned champions.

Sir Alex Ferguson's side went on to beat Sunderland 1-0 at the Stadium of Light. The result put the Red Devils in a celebratory mood as they found out that Manchester City were trailing 2-1 against a 10-man Queens Park Rangers.

QPR only needed to hold on for a few more minutes for Manchester United to snatch glory, but Eden Dzeko pulled level two minutes into injury time. Sergio Aguero then went on to produce one of the most iconic moments in English football by grasping a last-minute winner.

Manchester City were thus crowned champions of England for the first time in 44 years. No Premier League fan will forget the sight of Aguero grabbing the winner with Martin Taylor's commentary in the background.

However, those on the red side of Manchester remember the 2011-12 season as one of heartbreak. Scholes, who helped the Red Devils beat Sunderland that day, was among those who felt the pain.

Looking back at the 2011-12 finale, Scholes revealed how he was close to crying after Aguero scored the winner for the Cityzens. The Manchester United great admitted that Ferguson and Co. went into the final day without much hope and that only made things worse. He said on The Overlap YouTube channel:

“I nearly cried, you know when City beat QPR and we beat Sunderland, that was bad. It made it worse because City playing QPR, it wasn't going to be a problem and we went to Sunderland thinking it doesn't matter."
“It was 2-1 [to QPR] when our game finished...even now when you see Martin Tyler and 'Aguerooo'. Well we were more Manchester lads and all I heard growing up was 'Are you a City fan or a United fan?' and that was probably why."
“Liverpool is a big game but City was the one for me, even when they were in League One, they were always the one.”

Scholes helped Manchester United win the title the following year

The Red Devils went on to reclaim their status as Premier League champions the following year. They finished the 2012-13 season with 89 points, which was 11 more than second-placed Manchester City.

Scholes made 16 league appearances for Ferguson's side that season, contributing to two goals in the process. The Englishman, as well as the Scottish tactician, retired at the end of the campaign.

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Edited by Dakir Mohammed Thanveer