Evra: I nearly quit United

MANCHESTER UNITED defender Patrice Evra has claimed the Wayne Rooney saga that threatened to derail the club’s season last autumn inspired to the team to its current success.

The Frenchman also admitted that, like Rooney, he came close to leaving Old Trafford last year and only a heartfelt intervention from coach Alex Ferguson stopped him quitting.

But it was Evra’s comments about Rooney and his own future that will surprise supporters who have formed a unique bond with the French man since he joined the club in 2006. As he remembered the events of last October, when Rooney rejected a new contract and publicly said he wanted to leave the club.