The 22-year-old is expecting a recall for the Champions League clash with Rangers at Ibrox after Sir Alex Ferguson opted to rest Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand. It is a heaven-sent opportunity to impress for the Northern Ireland international, who by his own admission, slipped below the standards that had him earmarked as a genuine rival for Ferdinand's first-team berth at the start of the season. Indeed, it could be argued newcomer Chris Smalling, who is set to partner Evans on Wednesday, has now leaped his team-mate in the central defensive pecking order after doing enough during his first few months at Old Trafford to earn a call into Fabio Capello's squad for England's defeat by France last week. Evans is intelligent enough to admit the pressure is on. "This is probably the biggest challenge I have had," he said. "It is the first time I have been taken out of the team because of performances. "I was playing quite a bit at the start of the season but my performances were probably not up to scratch and I have been out of the team for a while. "But I am not going to mope about it. This is a good opportunity for me. "I played for Northern Ireland last week and got 90 minutes under my belt. When I get onto the pitch I must make sure I do the best I can." Evans should be able to supply some inside information on Wednesday's opponents too given he is close pals with Rangers duo Kyle Lafferty and Steven Davis, even taking advantage of his axing for the Premier League win at Stoke last month to attend his first Old Firm game, which the visitors won at Parkhead. "I have never been to Ibrox before but one of the benefits of being dropped was that I was able to come up for the Celtic-Rangers game," said Evans. "Ian Durrant sorted me out for the tickets and it was a great experience. "I was going to give Kyle a call later. The plan is to get the team. If I find it out, you know where it has come from."
