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<P align=center>Was There Evra Any Doubt?
Written off as a failure just 45 minutes into his Manchester United career, Patrice Evra can now legitimately boast to being the form left-back in the Premiership. It's an accolade many thought beyond the nippy 25 year-old after a miserable first outing against Manchester City last January. Now, Ca$hley Cole aside, there is probably no more penetrative left sided full-back in England. Who'd have thunk it just a year ago?
There was no better example of Evra's renaissance than 75 minutes into United's match in Sheffield on Saturday. Receiving the ball wide left in Ryan Giggs' territory, the Frenchman shifted it out of his feet, made a yard on the defender with a burst of pace and then wrapped his left peg around the ball to deliver the perfect cross for Wayne Rooney's sumptuous volleyed winner. It was a moment that epitomised why the returning Gabriel Heinze cannot get into the United side right now.
Indeed, Evra's pace, technique and penetration have greatly added to United's attacking play this season, allowing Giggs to tuck inside and support Scholes and Carrick in midfield. It's a run of form that has taken the player back into the France set-up and pushed Eric Abidal for a place in Les Bleus team.
Yet, to those in the know, Evra has always been capable of this level of form and more. Anybody who followed Monaco's run to the Champions League final in 2004 will have witnessed the fresh-faced Evra's rampaging runs down the left. While encouraged to attack with freedom by coach Didier Deschamps, the World Cup winner's subsequent departure had a profound affect on the Dakar-born full-back's form. His performances slumped and he found himself in the international wilderness after just five caps. He could - should - have moved clubs in the summer of 2005 but when United came knocking six months later there was only one choice Evra could make. Now the £5.5m fee looks a veritable bargain.
There's more to come from the player though. His confidence in possession is now translating into penetrative forays into the attacking third but lapses in concentration at the back could still cost United games. On Saturday Evra got dragged into the centre allowing Keith Gillespie, the former United winger, to rise unchallenged and nod home the opening goal. It wasn't entirely the Frenchman's fault but he should never have lost his man all the same.
The big question now is where Heinze fits into the picture? The Argentinean's all action, commitment-centric approach is too be lauded and there must surely be a place in United's team for him. Heinze is a defender, first and foremost. Happy to do the dirty work the more graceful Evra might shun. But on current form dropping Evra is unthinkable. Tactically he has become very important to the side, imparting shape and pace and that's leaving questions of form aside altogether. Many pundits see an opportunity for Heinze in the centre of defence, which is after all his natural position. He has all the attributes needed but the best central-defensive partnership in the Premiership be some distance is Ferdinand-Vidic. That route could be a long road ahead for Heinze.
United fans will be able assess Gabby's stop-start return to fitness in tomorrow night's Champions League match at Celtic Park - the hard man is almost certain to start. But come Sunday it would be a major surprise should his rival, Evra, not be named in the first XI for the game against Chelsea.
Either way United now has two top-class full-backs to call upon, where this time last year Ferguson was forced into a Hobson's Choice between the perennially hapless Mikael Silvestre and John O'Shea. For this Sir Alex must be lauded. He has rightly taken criticism from many quarters - including this website - regarding his transfer strategy but in Evra, and his January window companion Nemanja Vidic, the wizard has pulled off two top class signings for a decent price.
Statistics
97-98 - Paris-SG
98
Written off as a failure just 45 minutes into his Manchester United career, Patrice Evra can now legitimately boast to being the form left-back in the Premiership. It's an accolade many thought beyond the nippy 25 year-old after a miserable first outing against Manchester City last January. Now, Ca$hley Cole aside, there is probably no more penetrative left sided full-back in England. Who'd have thunk it just a year ago?
There was no better example of Evra's renaissance than 75 minutes into United's match in Sheffield on Saturday. Receiving the ball wide left in Ryan Giggs' territory, the Frenchman shifted it out of his feet, made a yard on the defender with a burst of pace and then wrapped his left peg around the ball to deliver the perfect cross for Wayne Rooney's sumptuous volleyed winner. It was a moment that epitomised why the returning Gabriel Heinze cannot get into the United side right now.
Indeed, Evra's pace, technique and penetration have greatly added to United's attacking play this season, allowing Giggs to tuck inside and support Scholes and Carrick in midfield. It's a run of form that has taken the player back into the France set-up and pushed Eric Abidal for a place in Les Bleus team.
Yet, to those in the know, Evra has always been capable of this level of form and more. Anybody who followed Monaco's run to the Champions League final in 2004 will have witnessed the fresh-faced Evra's rampaging runs down the left. While encouraged to attack with freedom by coach Didier Deschamps, the World Cup winner's subsequent departure had a profound affect on the Dakar-born full-back's form. His performances slumped and he found himself in the international wilderness after just five caps. He could - should - have moved clubs in the summer of 2005 but when United came knocking six months later there was only one choice Evra could make. Now the £5.5m fee looks a veritable bargain.
There's more to come from the player though. His confidence in possession is now translating into penetrative forays into the attacking third but lapses in concentration at the back could still cost United games. On Saturday Evra got dragged into the centre allowing Keith Gillespie, the former United winger, to rise unchallenged and nod home the opening goal. It wasn't entirely the Frenchman's fault but he should never have lost his man all the same.
The big question now is where Heinze fits into the picture? The Argentinean's all action, commitment-centric approach is too be lauded and there must surely be a place in United's team for him. Heinze is a defender, first and foremost. Happy to do the dirty work the more graceful Evra might shun. But on current form dropping Evra is unthinkable. Tactically he has become very important to the side, imparting shape and pace and that's leaving questions of form aside altogether. Many pundits see an opportunity for Heinze in the centre of defence, which is after all his natural position. He has all the attributes needed but the best central-defensive partnership in the Premiership be some distance is Ferdinand-Vidic. That route could be a long road ahead for Heinze.
United fans will be able assess Gabby's stop-start return to fitness in tomorrow night's Champions League match at Celtic Park - the hard man is almost certain to start. But come Sunday it would be a major surprise should his rival, Evra, not be named in the first XI for the game against Chelsea.
Either way United now has two top-class full-backs to call upon, where this time last year Ferguson was forced into a Hobson's Choice between the perennially hapless Mikael Silvestre and John O'Shea. For this Sir Alex must be lauded. He has rightly taken criticism from many quarters - including this website - regarding his transfer strategy but in Evra, and his January window companion Nemanja Vidic, the wizard has pulled off two top class signings for a decent price.
Statistics
97-98 - Paris-SG
98
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