Evra Hails Job Well Done

Patrice Evra was happy to praise his team mates following Manchester United's hard-earned 2-0 win at Crystal Palace.

The France international was involved in both goals, with a penetrating run ended by a foul from Marouane Chamakh to earn a penalty that Robin van Persie coolly converted.

Then a pull-back from the byline was superbly volleyed home by Wayne Rooney to double the lead six minutes later. In defence, he helped the Reds to a second straight clean sheet.

"It was job done," Evra told MUTV. "It was really important, we have had some bad results and tonight we could not afford another defeat. I think we saw a strong Manchester United, confident to play with the ball, and I'm really pleased for all the lads."

Evra was selected as Man of the Match by Sky Sports, while Rooney got the nod from the club’s fans via its social media channels, but the left-back was firmly focused on the needs of the team.

"I'm happy to help the team, but most important was the team performance. It does not matter if I'm Man of the Match. I'm just happy with the three points because what matters to me is Man United winning, not Patrice Evra winning Man of the Match.

Rooney's brilliantly-taken goal also earned the seal of approval from the 32-year-old, who is delighted the striker has signed his new long-term contract with the Reds.

"What a great finish it was, my cross was not easy to take, but it was a great volley," added Evra. "He deserved to have a big contract. I’m so happy for him because he is working hard, and it's a good sign for the future of Manchester United, for the fans and for everyone. I'm really pleased with Wazza because he deserves it."

The win over Palace also featured the centre-back pairing of Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand starting for the first time since the draw with Real Sociedad on 5 November, and Evra said their experience shone through on a potentially tricky evening in South London.

"It's good to have them back, they looked really strong tonight. We had a lot of experience, and, when Rio came on at Arsenal, I thought he was fantastic. You could see tonight with Rio and Vida in good form that we can be solid and get more clean sheets. But don't forget Chris Smalling can play there, Phil Jones and Jonny Evans can get back from injury. We have good centre-backs and that's important for the team."