Paul Scholes Reveals Radamel Falcao Fitness Concern, Doubts Arsenal Leadership

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes is worried over the fitness of Radamel Falcao and questions whether the Colombian has overcome his recent injury problems.

Falcao is yet to last 90 minutes for the Red Devils, despite contributing one goal and two assists in five appearances, recorded by WhoScored.com. He has appeared physical and bullish but lacking the finishing prowess he offered during spells with Porto, Atletico Madrid and Monaco.

Scholes doesn't believe the loan signing is 100 percent fit, as noted in his recent column for The Independent: "My concern, from United's point of view, is Radamel Falcao. Is he match-fit? Is he even free of injury? He still does not look quite right to me."

Louis van Gaal would be forgiven for dropping the out-of-form Robin van Persie to offer Falcao more game time during Sunday's match with Chelsea. Scholes believes the latter hasn't done enough to push himself into the team, though, as reported in his column:

"On Monday's evidence (against West Brom) it will be Van Persie who starts on Sunday. United need to win. Chelsea will regard anything more than a draw as a bonus."

The pundit's assessment is perhaps a harsh one. Falcao continues to regain fitness after missing much of 2014 with a serious knee problem. He has played 257 minutes for United across his quintet of appearances, per WhoScored, meaning he averages a goal contribution (either scoring or assisting) every 86 minutes.

Falcao currently averages 2.2 shots per display, a pass completion rate of 83.8 percent and 0.8 key passes every time he steps onto the pitch. These are solid numbers for a player who has remained sidelined for such a long period of time.

Many United fans will likely be more worried about RvP's output at this point. The Dutchman lacks sharpness and seems to have lost the stride of pace that used to get him away from defenders. He has scored two in 588 minutes, per WhoScored, averaging a telling contribution every 294 minutes (just over three matches).

United fans will be hoping he can quickly return to his often unplayable best, as seen below:

Adam Shergold of the Mail Online labelled the former Arsenal striker "a shadow of his former self" after the draw with West Brom. He suggested a "terminal decline" could be underway, as the "absent minded and ineffective" player struggles for momentum.

His lethargic, almost anonymous showing will certainly give Arsenal supporters some joy, especially as former United man Danny Welbeck is performing well for the Gunners.

Van Persie isn't playing with the quality of the individual who led United to the 2012-13 title, but Scholes believes Arsenal's lack of leadership will also see the north London side fall short this season.

Reminiscing about the infamous "pizzagate" match in 2004, which saw United end Arsenal's 49-game unbeaten run, Scholes compares the dominant forces of old with Arsene Wenger's current crop:

When I look at the team that played on that day, there were plenty of leaders, especially Patrick Vieira. In those days, Arsenal wouldn’t be bullied. The absence of those kind of players is one of the reasons they don’t win league titles any more and won’t win it this season.

United face Arsenal on Nov. 22, after matches with Chelsea, Manchester City and Crystal Palace. Both sides will have laid out their title intentions by then, with United in particular danger of letting their sixth-place position slip in the coming weeks.

A return to fitness and form for Falcao and Van Persie would significantly aid the side. Falcao has shown enough quality to endear himself to fans already and he can be expected to continue improving as he racks up game time.

RvP is a concern and needs to oil his joints before lasting rust sets in. Should he do this, United's hopes for the season will dramatically improve.