Evra Is Right Choice

Patrice Evra’s personality and performance level have made him the stand-out candidate to fill in as United captain in the absence of Nemanja Vidic, according to Sir Alex.

Vidic has been out of action since sustaining cruciate ligament damage against Basel at the beginning of December, and, as a result, Evra has worn the armband for the last seven games.

With the full-back featuring more regularly this season than the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Ryan Giggs, the manager sees him as the perfect stand-in.

"I think one of your players who has been playing all the time should be in the forefront to be captain, and that was the case with Patrice," Sir Alex said at a press conference on Friday. "He’s a very popular player with a good personality, which is important to have if you’re captain of a club like ours. He’s very friendly and has got a good humour about him, but he’s also quite a determined lad."

Sir Alex also explained that Evra had been chosen due to the injury problems which have blighted Ferdinand’s season, and compared the two players’ leadership styles.

"Rio would have been captain if he hadn’t had all those inconsistencies in terms of his injuries at the time," added the boss. "He [Evra] has got different qualities to Rio. He’s not as voluble as Rio is, but certainly influences a lot of things, and his own team performance, for instance, is very good."