Evans' End Goal In Sight

Fresh from netting his first ever senior strike, Jonny Evans tells United Review he has his sights firmly set on fulfilling his main aim of the campaign – another title triumph...

Have you come down from the high of scoring your first United goal yet at Wolves earlier this month?
[Laughs] I’ve had a constant smile on my face ever since! There had been a lot of banter about me not scoring because it had gone on for so long. Every time I’d gone up for a corner I’d try my hardest to score and got close a few times. But this time I was more relaxed and suddenly the ball fell to me six yards out and it went in.

How many times have you watched it?
[Laughs] I don’t want to say! Quite a lot but only because it’s kept popping up on TV.

How much of a relief is it – did you worry it would never come?
A few weeks ago someone showed me a list of players who have played for the club and never scored and the number of appearances they’d made and I was about sixth on the list! [Laughs] So from that point of view it’s a relief.

Did the goal cap a great run of form in the league for both the team and you personally?
Yeah, definitely. Going on a run is what we always set out to do especially during the second half of the season. We’ve been going into every game feeling like we’re never going to lose. That self-belief is something we’ve always had at the club and we really believe we can win every game.

You’ve been one of United’s most consistent performers – what do you attribute that to?
I think I’ve just concentrated on playing football the way I know how. Over the last couple of years I was trying to do things on the pitch that weren’t me, like getting into physical battles when I’m not really one of the strongest defenders physically. I’ve always been more of a reader of the game and I think I maybe let that slip out of my own game. So I basically just went back and looked at what I was good at and concentrated on the things that came naturally to me.

The manager recently hailed your quality at bringing the ball out of defence – is that something you’ve worked particularly hard on?
I think it’s always been a big strength of my game right from when I was a kid. I always thought it was a good attribute I could bring to the team but when I first broke in the main thing I wanted to do was concentrate on my defending. I thought if I did that well for a couple of years then the other things [like distribution] would come and this season I think I’ve managed to combine both.

With Chris Smalling’s emergence and the arrival of Phil Jones, did you always feel this season was going to be an important one for you?
Every season here is important. If you let your standards drop you won’t be here for long because the standards set by the manager, the coaches, the players and the fans are so high. Everyone has periods in their career when they have dips in form and I’m no different. It’s just about accepting that and trying to do something about it. That’s what I’ve done.

It must be nice to get recognition for your displays outside the club…
I’m not bothered about recognition to be honest. I’ve learnt in recent years how recognition can easily go out of the window; it doesn’t last forever. I just go out there and try to enjoy my football and do my best. I don’t pay attention to anything else outside.

Finally, is the desire to win the title this season even greater given who are nearest challengers are?
There is always a desire no matter who is challenging. It’s not just about Manchester City or whichever team is challenging, it’s about you wanting to create more history at Manchester United. You want to be able to look back and be proud on what you’ve achieved. I’m sure when you look back you’ll forget who was challenging you because it all comes down to what trophies you win. Hopefully we can win another in May.