The humble life of Paul Scholes: Man United legend, 50, lives with fear of what happens to autistic son when he dies, shares custody with estranged childhood sweetheart - and his netball star daughter is dating a Love Islander

Man United and England football legend Paul Scholes has opened up on the trials, tribulations, joys and biggest fear of his family life. 

The softly-spoken 50-year-old has largely kept his private life out of the spotlight since hanging up his football boots in 2004 after a glittering career. 

But Scholes, separated from his childhood sweetheart Claire Froggatt, who he married in 1999, has spoken candidly about the challenges of being a doting dad to his 20-year-old non-verbal autistic son, Aiden. 

He told Gary Neville on the Stick to Football podcast, sponsored by Arne that his punditry work is based around the vital routine Aiden needs in his life. 

Claire and Scholes take three nights a week each to look after their youngest, who he says brings him immense pleasure and joy. They also share eldest Arron, 26 and daughter, Alicia, 24. 

It hasn't always been easy for the family living with challenges that a neuro-diverse child can present. 

In fact, Scholes took some time to come to terms with the diagnosis and has struggled to speak about it in the past on camera. 

After an early episode of the Overlap, he took to Instagram, writing: 'Just filmed an and we were asked the question "What has had the biggest impact on our lives", to which I couldn't answer even though I knew...

'Without question having a boy with severe special needs, wishing he was normal every single day and then realising how lucky I am when I see another family that are worse off than we are.

'The undoubted impact it has on his brother and sister kills me every single day. No way I could that say that in front of people or on telly. Bye.'

And his great fear is what will happen to Aiden when he and his wife are no longer around to provide the constant care he requires. 

He confessed: 'The big concern now is because you’re getting a bit older, what happens when you’re not here? That’s the thing that’s now on my mind all the time. There are times when it’s not in your head, it’s like anything, then there’s times like now when you do start speaking about it, it’s at the front of your mind.'

On BBC documentary Paddy and Christine McGuinness: Our Family and Autism, Scholes also spoke about the impact Aiden's diagnosis had on his professional life at the start. 

'When you get to 12, 13, 14… now he's 16 it's never going to happen. He's never going to be neurotypical, but he's great and you have to accept it.

'I've never said this before. I'm looking at him thinking he might have to go into care. I just don't know how you handle that. 

'We got the diagnosis. We were playing Derby away. I was terrible, absolutely shocking.

'I didn't want to be there. Head was gone. I was worrying about autism, reading, trying to find out anything I could.'

He also told Neville this week: 'I never got a break from it, even when playing. It was very hard in those days, feels like it was years ago. 

'Don't get me wrong, he can be so happy it's untrue, and it gives you great pleasure and joy, it's not all bad.'

There were challenges with Aiden not being able to express himself, getting frustrated and scratching and biting, with Scholes saying he used to have to put him in a headlock just to cut his hair. 

Scholes went on to share a heartbreaking story about Aiden suffering from toothache and being unable to explain his pain. 

'There was a time last year I took him away and he kept feeling his mouth and not sleeping and I had no idea what was wrong with him,' he said.

'He kept doing it and doing it, so I put numbing gel on his lips cos he can’t tell you what’s wrong or got pain anywhere and he won’t go to a dentist. He won’t sit there and have someone open his mouth, he just can’t do it.

'We got him to a special needs dentist and they had to put him to sleep with gas. He had to have a fillings and all sorts then had an operation because his mouth was a mess. But he can’t tell you what pain he’s in. That must have been going on eight-to-nine months, imagine having toothache for nine months?'

Scholes says Aiden needs care 24 hours of the day and he splits the week with Claire, with her mother doing Fridays.

The couple have now separated but live close to each other. They married in 1999 and were together during their teenage years. 

They married at an intimate ceremony and kept their privacy closely guarded during his time as one of the nation's most famous footballers. 

While Aiden splits his time between his parents' homes, the older two children have flown the nest. 

Scholes' daughter, Alicia, is a semi-professional netball player for England and London Pulse and one of her social media stories involving her famous father went viral in 2021. 

A clip showed the former England midfielder chewing his daughter's toenails. 

Alicia commented that the video showed 'true love', although many social media users were disgusted by the footage.

Last year during a spat on X, Neil Maupay responded to Scholes calling him an 'idiot' by taunting: 'Surprised Paul Scholes can fit my name in his mouth alongside his daughter's toes,' followed by a foot emoji.

Alicia, who previously dated Welsh rugby star Louis Rees-Zammit, is currently with Love Island Series 11 star Ayo Odukoya.

She has more than 100,000 followers on Instagram, regularly showing off her glamourous lifestyle and holidays with her other half.

Alicia clearly inherited her father's sporting ability and is a co-owner of the Scholes Gym along with her older brother Aaron. 

Both are also personal trainers at the £500k facility but Aaron hit the headlines for the wrong reasons prior to his fresh start.  

He was found guilty of assault after beating up a former school friend outside a pub aged 19 in 2018, taking a picture of the victim's injuries during an unprovoked 'happy slap-style' attack.

Arron left Robert Kemper, 21, with bloodshot eyes and bruises all over his face after the attack on the day of England's 2-1 victory over Tunisia in the World Cup that year.

During the assault at the Granby Arms in Uppermill, near Oldham, Greater Manchester, Kemper - who was drunk - was seen lying flat on his back and offering no resistance whilst Scholes beat him about the face.

He was then seen 'jumping up and down and laughing hysterically' before taking a picture of the victim's injuries on his mobile phone.

Kemper who had known Aaron from their school days together - remembered little of the attack himself - but said in the moments leading up to the assault, he recalled saying 'hello- alright mate!' only to get 'very little response.'

Scholes was striker for non-league Manchester club Royton Town at the time and denied assault by beating claiming he was acting in self defence but he was convicted after a trial.

At Tameside magistrates court in 2019 the youngster, who was a sports marketing management student at Manchester Metropolitan University, looked crestfallen as his parents watched from the public gallery. 

'I knew Arron from school. Me and my friends were just discussing and talking about the football and then played some pool and I then went out for a cigarette,' Kemper said.

'There was a couple of other people who came out but I can't remember who was there. I was having a cigarette facing away from the door when I started receiving punches, I didn't know where it was coming from or who was throwing them.

'I was just aware of walking out in a daze a few minutes later, I was still unsure of what happened. I was very confused about that incident - I just knew I was struck a number of times and I had not hit anybody else.

'I didn't know who did it at the time but I found out shortly afterwards. Both my eyes were swollen and there was congealed blood in my nose and ears.

'I had blood shot eyes for a few weeks, swollen tender cheeks, swollen lips and bruising for a week or so.

'I saw Arron last at his 18th birthday party. We had been friends at school. We had fallen out but had made up in regards to that.

'I'm not sure of the events of the night, I just know the injuries I sustained. I was in a daze and unconscious for most of it.

'I'm not sure whether the injuries or the alcohol affected my memory. The court heard after the incident Kemper sent Scholes a barrage of text messages saying: 'Lol imagine that you bloodied my face.

'Lol I'm trying to sort things out with you. P****, go one on one. Say something. I have got a black eye, f***ing speak to me then, say something p****. Say something or are you bent.

'P*** me off say something goon. You seen my eye you ****, actually mad.'

Under cross examination Mr Kemper denied claims he called Scholes a 'p*****' earlier in the evening at a different pub and asked him outside for a fight.

He added: 'There was no reason for me to do that. We had discussions about trying to repair our relationship. There was no reason for me to try starting something out of the blue.

'I remember him being with other people. After it happened I did call him a "p****". I said "you're a p**** for hitting me from behind". At the time whilst I was being hit, I didn't have time to see who was hitting me. I was stood next to one of the tables outside.

'The blows to my head were severe and friends told me I received a sustained attack.

Landlady Debbie Hardy told the hearing: 'Rob came in and he had a drink and about 20 minutes later Arron came in. Another man came over and put his arm around him and whispered something in his ear.

'That's when Arron ran straight out to assault Rob. I ran out after him but he was punching Rob. didn't see Rob do anything at all other than trying to defend himself.

'I saw two other males pull Arron away. Rob was dazed and was looking around as if to say 'what happened'.

'There was blood on his face. Two lads restrained Arron but he was jumping up and down and laughing hysterically at Rob. He got his phone out and took a picture of Robs face then proceeded to punch him again.

'He started laughing when he looked at the picture. He put his phone towards Rob's face and then hit him again. Rob was stood with his hands down beside him. At no point was Rob being threatening.

'One of Arron's friends said that Rob had called him a "p****" but I said no one deserved to be punished like that.'

Arron was ordered to complete 80 hours unpaid work as part of a 12 month community order and pay £775 in costs, including £150 to the victim. 

Now Arron works as a top level personal trainer and co-owner of the family gym, which was set up after Covid in a massive 10,000 square-foot complex in Oldham and appeared there alongside his father, training on an early episode of the Overlap and sharing his experiences growing up with an autistic brother. 

Arron is a Level 3 qualified personal trainer and Alicia is among the qualified PTs on staff. 

When the building was completed, Paul said: 'To open Scholes Gym here is really important to me. It’s the sort of venue I dreamed of having access to (in Covid) and, along with Arron and Alicia, I’m pleased to be able to create it for others.

'It was born out of lockdown, we had a lot of time on our hands and we enjoyed working out in our back garden really. 

'We thought it would be great to find a building in the area, we came across this building that needed a lot of work and was probably a bit bigger than we originally intended but we've created something we're really proud of.'

As the family business thrives, Scholes has now stepped away from live broadcasting to focus on podcasting, allowing him to stick to a more strict care routine with his youngest. 

The launch of his new podcast with former team-mate Nicky Butt, The Good, The Bad & The Football has further allowed him to focus on his son.  

'I do studio work, but everything is built around his day,' Scholes confirmed. 'Last season on Thursday nights I’d do the Europa League for Man United, that’s the night I’d usually have him, so he was getting all agitated, biting and scratching. 

'He knows the pattern’s not there straight away. And I did that for years really, always thinking I’ve got to stop this at some point so I had the chance to do the podcast and I thought that would suit me more, well not me, Aiden.'