Evans Savours Fans' Backing

Jonny Evans felt the atmosphere throughout United's victory over Arsenal was one of the most memorable he has sampled at Old Trafford.

As David Moyes' men forged ahead through Robin van Persie's header and dug in to secure the three-point haul, the home supporters soundtracked the afternoon in raucous fashion, drawing praise from Evans for their part in events.

“I think that’s the best atmosphere I have heard at Old Trafford in a long time, other than against Real Madrid in the Champions League last season," the Northern Ireland international told MUTV. "Right from the start, the fans were very loud and it was a really enjoyable game to play in. The tempo of the game and the spirit that it was played in was very good."

Had United lost to the Premier League leaders, Arsenal would have held an 11-point lead over the reigning champions, and Evans admits reeling in Arsene Wenger's men was imperative.

“The result was important, especially with Arsenal being top of the league," he admitted. "Apart from Liverpool, the other teams around us have slipped up, so it was big in terms of the points. It needed to be a good performance to beat Arsenal, and it was.

“We got off to a bad start [this season], but we talked about it, and we want to be within touching distance of top spot by the Christmas period. We know that we always finish the season well, we’ve got experience on our side and we’ve got history at this great club, so we’re in a good position.”

Evans starred at the heart of United's defence alongside Nemanja Vidic and latterly Phil Jones, after the Serbian was withdrawn through injury, and he conceded that a solid defensive performance was vital to the champions' hopes.

“We always want clean sheets," he said. "We defended collectively and I thought that our team shape was very good today. It was great in the first half and obviously Nemanja got injured, but Phil Jones stepped in and he’s a natural centre-back, so we defended as normal. We held on well as a team. We limited them to very few chances."

At the opposite end of the field, Wayne Rooney's all-action display elevated him to clinch the club's official man of the match award. After the latest in a growing list of outstanding outings this term, Rooney is, according to Evans, operating at full tilt.

"I think his energy is about as much as you'll get from him; he worked his socks off," said the defender. "He looked sharp and he's been doing that in training quite a lot, committing players and going at them, and he put that into practice today.

"It really helps us a lot. He needs to be involved in the game, he likes to be the main man on the ball, and he enjoys getting back to make tackles. That’s what he thrives on, and as we’ve seen today, if he puts the effort in, we get the reward for that."