6 Reasons Paul Scholes Should Play for England at Euro 2012

Paul Scholes for England?

That's what some are saying. It's a group that includes Harry Redknapp, the odds-on favorite to succeed Fabio Capello as England manager.

But not everyone is so sure. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson doesn't think it's such a great idea.

"To go back to England after so long is a big step and I think Paul will be concentrating on United," he said.

Both sides have good arguments, but today we're bringing your six reasons Scholes should play for England at Euro 2012.

Agree? Disagree? Think we've lost it? Leave a reply in the comments.

Form

Scholes has been in great form since rejoining Manchester United in January.

After coming out of retirement on Jan. 8, Scholes needed little time to start contributing again in his old midfield role. Within days, he was scoring and inspiring United to victory.

Scholes scored again in Sunday's 2-1 win over Norwich—his 10th appearance since his retirement U-turn. For now, his form shows no signs of decline.

Calming Influence

United struggled through their Europa League match against Ajax at Old Trafford last week. The Dutch visitors overran United's midfield for much of the match, creating several scoring opportunities.

But Red Devils manager Sir Alex Ferguson made a double switch in the 61st minute, swapping Jonathan Evans for Ashley Young and Scholes for Tom Cleverley. The move paid dividends immediately, as United's Scholes-reinforced midfield slowed Ajax's attacks considerably.

United lost the match, but held off Ajax enough to advance. Without Scholes' calming influence in the midfield, though, United might have crashed out of the competition.

That quality would be welcomed in England's squad this summer—or any time, really.

Experience

Sure, Scholes is old. But at 37, he owns a wealth of experience. And with England in transition after the departure of Fabio Capello, on-field experience is even more important than usual.

In fact, Capello may have been thinking the same thing two years ago when he reportedly asked Scholes to return to the fold as England prepared for the 2010 World Cup.

Scholes claimed he would have rejoined England had he been given more time. It was a dubious claim, but it showed that Scholes hadn't completely ruled out the idea.

Things could be different with an English manager at the helm—and with Scholes' country clearly in need.

Regret

According to this report, Scholes has at least one regret about his international career: that he didn't represent England at many major tournaments.

If that's true—and there's plenty of reason to believe it is—Euro 2012 would present Scholes with one very convenient way to rid himself of that nagging regret.

The (Probable) Next Manager (Probably) Wants Him

It's all hypothetical right now, but that may change soon.

Harry Redknapp is the overwhelming favorite to replace Fabio Capello as England manager. Redknapp has said he'd like to pick Scholes for England.

If the manager wants him, Scholes should play.

Playing Like a Spaniard

Scholes has earned praise throughout his career for his playing style—from holding possession to passing to scoring great goals. Earlier this month, Harry Redknapp—and in a more oblique way, Alex Ferguson as well—reiterated the idea that Scholes "plays like a Spaniard."

The idea certainly isn't outlandish. Zinedine Zidane famously praised Scholes two years ago, and Xavi once called Scholes "the most complete" midfielder of the last 15-20 years.

This summer, 15 teams at Euro 2012 will try to figure out how to beat Spain. Clearly, England would do well to take their resident Spaniard along.

Follow Mike on Twitter: @MikeCummings37