With a Champions League semi-final against Schalke looming on Tuesday, Ferguson opted to rest a number of senior stars for the Premier League tussle against Everton. Skipper Nemanja Vidic and energetic midfielder Park Ji-sung did not even make the bench, while Ryan Giggs, Michael Carrick and Patrice Evra were among the substitutes. After 83 minutes of a vital game, the move appeared to have backfired, but an Antonio Valencia cross and Javier Hernandez downward header later, Ferguson had been vindicated and United were surging towards a record 19th title. "The manager made an awful lot of changes, including myself, and there were people who had not played for a while," Evans said. "It was a big gamble. I am sure some people thought that when they looked at the team sheet. But that is what the manager does and it has paid off." That it did so was not entirely down to Hernandez. Wayne Rooney continues to show impressive versatility and was once again effective when he dropped back into a midfield role. Anderson won man-of-the-match plaudits for an industrious display in central midfield, whilst Evans produced his best performance of a below-par season alongside Rio Ferdinand. However, without the 19th goal of an incredible debut campaign by Hernandez, it would have counted for nothing. So on the weekend when Fernando Torres scored his first goal since making a £50million switch to Chelsea from Liverpool, it was little wonder that new Twitter convert Rooney claimed Hernandez, who cost just £7million from Chivas 12 months ago, is the "buy of the century". Evans did not quite go that far, but he did list Hernandez as the buy of the season. "You could say that because of the number of important goals he has scored for us," the Northern Ireland defender said. "We got to see little glimpses of him during the World Cup and you could see he had pace, but no-one knew much about him. "He reminds me of an old-fashioned type centre-forward. People don't realise he is quite a strong lad with a great jump. Also, he knows where the goal is." More than that, Hernandez is utterly selfless. Time and again this season, the 22-year-old has been asked to reflect on yet another important goal. The answer is always the same. "We needed those three points, it didn't matter who scored," he said. "We always think about the team. That is the most important thing. We don't need to be selfish and think only about scoring ourselves. "This season has been a dream come true for me. I have scored 19 goals and we have almost won the Premier League. It is an unbelievable thing. "But if I had the chance to swap my 19 goals for a lot of championships for this team, I would do it." And unlike some who pay lip-service to the idea of teamwork, Hernandez means it. Whether that will be enough to earn him a starting slot in Tuesday's first leg with Schalke is open to debate. His two effective contributions to the quarter-final triumph over Chelsea are bound to help, although the German outfit are felt to be slightly quicker at the back than Carlo Ancelotti's men. That, for the fourth time in five seasons, United have to combine preparations for such a massive game with a title drive is testament to the spirit Ferguson has instilled into his players. Without Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez, Marseille manager Didier Deschamps wass not alone in believing Ferguson's squad lacks some of the stardust that was present in previous years. However, they remain a devastatingly effective unit and unless both Arsenal and Chelsea can defeat them in their next two league games, it is hard to imagine they will drop enough points in their final two matches - against Blackburn and Blackpool - to finish anything other than champions. "It was nervous on the field," Hernandez added. "We wanted to get the goal as soon as possible and knew we needed to keep working. "It was hot and sunny and it was hard, but the history of Manchester United is about days like this."
