Paul Scholes, Rio Ferdinand Slam Manchester United After CSKA Moscow Draw

Manchester United came under fire from ex-Old Trafford pair Paul Scholes and Rio Ferdinand in the wake of Wednesday's 1-1 draw against CSKA Moscow in the Champions League.

Anthony Martial equalised for the Red Devils after giving away a penalty earlier in the match for an avoidable handball, but BT Sport pundit Scholes was left unimpressed by the team's performance (via Mirror's David McDonnell):

"

You look at the United team, there is no quality, no movement. People are not running. Is it the way they are told to play? It’s all safety playing across the pitch. I can’t remember a pass in to Wayne Rooney . There is no movement.

You’ve got midfield players who can run—Ander Herrera, Jesse Lingaard, Anthony Martial—stick the ball into Rooney and run but there’s not one of them even thinking of running.

"

Those harsh words will come in stark contrast to the attractive methods he got so used to promoting over the course of a 19-year playing career with the club, since which title challenges have dried up significantly.

Former team-mate Ferdinand also appeared on BT Sport and was equally damning of Louis van Gaal's side following the display (h/t MailOnline's Nicholas Godden):

"

I can't imagine the frustration that Louis van Gaal must be feeling, from going to the weekend against Everton (a 3-0 win) to this, where the intensity doesn't seem anywhere near the same.

The exact word is pedestrian. I feel like a broken record. I have said it nearly every time I have watched Manchester United. When the ball gets wide, in the midfield and the forward areas, there are no options. It is just not Manchester United.

"

Martial's £36 million arrival at the club in the summer has helped salve those woes, and the France international bagged his fifth goal in nine appearances on Wednesday, but the emerging star was hit-and-miss in Moscow.

Commentating for MUTV, ex-Manchester United midfielder Paddy Crerand asserted the visitors deserved more from a tie in which they had 79 per cent of the second-half possession:

The Red Devils are still in with a fine chance of qualifying from Group B but currently sit two points behind leaders Wolfsburg and still have to travel to the Volkswagen Arena on December 8. 

Before that, Van Gaal can look forward to back-to-back home fixtures against CSKA and PSV Eindhoven, both of which will now be seen as must-win games after United have taken just a point from their trips to those two teams.

Ivan Sekretarev/Associated Press

It's been almost 18 months since Van Gaal officially took his place at the Old Trafford helm, and a busy summer of transfer dealings is likely having an effect on a team still getting to grips with one another.

Yet Twitter didn't feel much sympathy for the United chief as his side ran to a share of the spoils on a cold night in Moscow, as illustrated by JOE.ie:

The Dutchman may be justified in earning a stay of execution as United currently sit third in the Premier League, two points behind leaders Manchester City, and boast the joint-second-best defence in the division.

If Martial's start to life in England can be maintained—dare we say, even improved upon—and the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger, Memphis Depay and Morgan Schneiderlin have the desired impact, United could be a major threat.

It places an even greater pressure on the likes of captain Wayne Rooney and Chris Smalling, some of the more established Old Trafford figures, to therefore ease the transition of any newcomers. 

It's perhaps an unfair burden to expect a new, young United to produce the same marvels as one of the best squads ever formed under Sir Alex Ferguson, but that is the inevitable weight that comes with such status.