Paul Scholes: '99 won the Champions League embarrassed to celebrate, because did not participate[suchnfei]

Scholes, who recently appeared on the podcast Football's Greatest Eras, said that after United won the 1999 Champions League, he and Keane were initially reluctant to celebrate after not playing in the final.

In the 1999 Champions League final, Manchester United beat Bayern 2-1 thanks to stoppage time goals from Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to complete the club's first and so far only treble. Scholes and Keane did not play in that final because of suspension and Scholes said: "We didn't want to celebrate, I think Keane is the same, if you look back and ask yourself if you really won the Champions League, you don't really feel like you won it."

"I think you have to play in the final to have that feeling of winning, you have to be at least partially involved in the game for you to feel like you deserve a winner's medal. But the lads were nice and let me go off to celebrate with Keane, which of course you expect from a team-mate, but it was a bit awkward."

Fellow guest Nicky Butt, a member of Manchester United's Class of 92, said: "I think from the moment we went downstairs to the party, it was two days and two nights, wasn't it?"

Scholes replied: "We were flying back to Manchester, but we were still walking around Barcelona at 7.30am the next morning, with my dad and his friends, because my wife Claire couldn't make it, she was pregnant and was due to give birth to Aaron."

"So my dad and his friend came to the scene and we celebrated at the bar near the hotel, which is on the beach, and we sat until 7.30am and the plane was leaving in two hours."

Bart added: "I didn't sleep that night either, I spent the night at the bar with my dad and some other team-mates. I remember wearing the winner's medal around my neck and I think I wore it for three days. I must have stinked because people pour champagne and all sorts of things on you and we didn't sleep at all."