Evans admits United suffering from fatigue
Manchester United defender Jonny Evans has blamed exhaustion for his side's poor showing against Chelsea in the FA Cup.
By FOX SPORTS Staff
The Red Devils initially took a commanding two goal lead against Chelsea in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, but the Blues fought back to level the scores at 2-2 to earn themselves a replay of the tie at Stamford Bridge.
United manager Sir Alex Ferguson pinpointed tiredness as a reason for his squad's lethargic display, an assertion which his Chelsea counterpart Rafael Benitez mockingly dismissed as a 'joke'.
Evans however sounded his agreement with Ferguson's suggestion that fatigue severely affected United's performance on Sunday, and the Northern Ireland international revealed the players were given a well-deserved break following the quarter-final tie.
"We had a couple of days off after the Chelsea game," Evans was quoted as saying by the official United website.
"The manager decided to give us an extra day or so's rest so we came in today [Wednesday] and got the legs going again but it wasn't too hard out there on the training pitch.
"Obviously, I didn't play in the Real Madrid game so I wasn't feeling physical tiredness but, on Sunday, I did feel a bit tired and a bit drained in the second half.
"I think the mental side of it drains you. There were a lot of emotions during the week and we have to try to switch off from that and prepare for the next match.
"When you're at Manchester United, a lot of the time it's about preparing yourself mentally for every game.
"You know you have to be at the top of your performance and you can't let standards slip.
"I think what caught us out a bit against Chelsea at the weekend was we got off to a good start but the mentally-drained side really showed in the second half."
Evans also admitted to being relieved at surviving a late Chelsea onslaught and praised goalkeeper David De Gea for keeping them in the competition.
"Probably coming out of the game with a draw was the best result for us in the end," Evans added.
"We've got a replay coming up so we're glad to still be in the Cup.
"De Gea made a great save in the last couple of minutes which, I suppose, you can say keeps us in the tie."
United's next fixture sees them take on Reading in the Premier League.