Man Utd icon Patrice Evra reveals why James Milner was the hardest player to face – and left him needing two weeks off
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MANCHESTER UNITED legend Patrice Evra has revealed he dreaded facing James Milner - and took weeks to recover after playing against the Liverpool star.
Evra, 40, played for United between 2006-2014 and came up against Milner several times, including one of the five games he played for West Ham later in his career.
And each encounter was an ordeal for the Frenchman, who admits he looked out for which club Milner played for at the beginning of every season.
Evra told : "I bore no grudges against opponents — apart from James Milner.
"I hated to play against him. He defended more than me, and he wasn’t a defender.
"He worked harder than any player. I couldn’t breathe when I got the ball because he was always about to tackle me.
"I needed two weeks to recover after playing against him.
"I used to check which club he was playing for at the start of the season.
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"When he joined City, with better players around him, there was even less space for me - he followed me everywhere.
"I even had to check he wasn’t in my car when I left the ground."
Ten years ago this month, Milner gave Evra a nightmare he will not forget in a hurry.
Manchester City thumped a United side containing Evra 6-1 at Old Trafford - Milner provided two assists and helped City to a dominant win.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Milner is still going strong and tormenting United.
He featured in The Reds' 5-0 win at Old Trafford on Sunday and could have got on the scoresheet if Diogo Jota did not pip him to Trent Alexander-Arnold's low cross for the second goal.
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