Evra eager to be France fixture

Patrice Evra has crowned a fine start to the season with a recall to the France squad for Wednesday's friendly against European champions Greece.

Progress rewarded
The 25-year-old defender won the last of his five caps against Poland in November 2004, but having missed out on the FIFA World Cup finals, has responded with a resurgence in form with Manchester United FC. The left-back, who moved to Old Trafford from AS Monaco FC last January - a signing Sir Alex Ferguson described as "exciting" and "fantastic" - has started to justify that faith to help United to the top of the English Premiership. And as he told uefa.com, he is relishing another opportunity to prove his credentials with Les Bleus.

uefa.com: How did you learn you had been called up by France?

Patrice Evra: After training with United, my mobile was full of congratulatory messages and I was delighted to see my name in the squad again. I really wanted this call-up, but I knew it would come. It was a genuine ambition for me. I knew I would get this chance once I had fully settled at United.

uefa.com: Did this acclimatisation period cost you a place at the World Cup?

Evra: No. It wasn't so long, and it was a normal process. At Monaco, I was in a comfortable position, with no real competition. I knew everyone and was in my small cocoon. Arriving in Manchester was a shock. Everything is different here - the football, the area, the atmosphere. In Ligue 1, when I received the ball I had time to look around. Here, you're tackled immediately. I had to become more aggressive, more consistent and had to cope with incredible competition. In Europe, no other side has three left-backs as good as Gabriel [Heinze], Mikaël [Silvestre] and myself. With them, you cannot afford a poor half, otherwise you're dead.

uefa.com: What about Sir Alex Ferguson, who celebrated 20 years as United manager last week?

Evra: With him, it's win or nothing. Here, when you draw, in the dressing room it's as if you have lost 4-0. Sir Alex is rigorous and demanding but also very protective towards his players. He's a great manager.

uefa.com: What do you feel was the turning point for you at United?

Evra: Over the summer we travelled to South Africa and I recovered my strength. I returned to being the Patrice I love and I was raring to go. Missing the World Cup really upset me. That was a bad period, but I rode my bike and worked on my strength. I needed to take out my frustration and told myself, 'I must deliver now'. That's the reason Louis Saha started calling me 'The Cannibal'. Now I realise those six months of adaptation were necessary.

uefa.com: Is there less competition to be France's left-back than United's?

Evra: No. France have [Eric] Abidal and also [Gaël] Givet, [Julien] Escudé, and Mikaël [Silvestre]. I haven't set a particular target with France, and I'm not thinking about UEFA EURO 2008™. Playing one or 90 minutes would make me happy.