Paul Scholes returned to the Manchester United lineup on Sunday as he came out of retirement to feature in the club's 3-2 win over Manchester City in the FA Cup.

Newspaper reports over the past couple of days indicated that Scholes was about to rejoin the team, and he made a surprising return as he entered Sunday's match in the 59th minute as a substitute for Nani.

The 37-year-old announced his retirement from the game at the end of last season, but after assuming a role on the club's reserve team coaching staff, Scholes has decided to return to the pitch for the rest of the season.

"He came to see me and said he wanted to come back, he was missing it too much," United manager Sir Alex Ferguson told ITV. "There were no negatives as far as I'm concerned. The players were fantastic about it, the fans I'm sure will be happy and I'm happy."

During his time with United, Scholes won 10 league titles, three FA Cups, two League Cups and two Champions League crowns.