Siddharth Juyal
Manchester United defender Jonny Evans idolized former captain Roy Keane during his childhood days as a young fan
Manchester United defender Jonny Evans revealed that former United captain Roy Keane was his childhood football idol. The 35-year-old rejoined the Red Devils during the summer and he is currently on his second spell at the club.
The Northern Ireland international sustained an injury in the Champions League Group A game against FC Copenhagen on 9th November. Ten Hag substituted Evans in the 15th minute of the game as the Irishman failed to continue with the game.
Evans played under Keane during the two loan spells at Sunderland between 2006 to 2008. The 35-year-old’s spell under the former United captain helped him break into the United senior team under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Answering Fans’ Q&A (h/t Manchester United’s Official Site), Evans revealed his football idol since his childhood days. He said:
“My football idol was Roy Keane and I think there was a bit of the Ireland connection there. But he was Man United captain. I was a Man United fan, at that time when I was kind of a young boy. So he was my big, big hero growing up.”
Although signed as an emergency backup, Evans has played in eight matches for United across all competitions. The 35-year-old scored the winning goal against Burnley and started in six out of those eight games.
United manager Erik ten Hag has lost his first-choice centre-back Lisandro Martinez to a long-term injury. Furthermore, Raphael Varane has suffered from nagging injuries and fitness concerns throughout this season.
Evans has been a saving grace for the United boss as the experienced centre-back kept the defence somewhat organised. United have conceded 30 goals from 18 matches in all competitions, leaking only six with the Irishman on the field.
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Ten Hag would be hoping that Evans will quickly recover from injury to help the team in the upcoming fixtures. The Red Devils are facing an early elimination from the Champions League before the knockout stages. They will face Galatasaray in the must-win away game at the hostile RAMS Park Stadium. United are also chasing the top four in the Premier League as they are currently five points away from fourth place.
