Jonny Evans scoring for Manchester United? When have we seen that before?
No, not that one which got ruled out against Burnley last season, but almost 11 years ago against Sunderland!
Since the inaugural Premier League began in 1992/93, our much-loved defender now has the second-longest gap between goals for United. He sits one place behind Cristiano Ronaldo when the superstar’s departure to Real Madrid in 2009 was followed by a historical return against Newcastle United, as Old Trafford saw a legend wear the red shirt again at the Theatre of Dreams.
There were no further goals until ex-United defender, and now MUTV pundit, Phil Bardsley, put the north-east side ahead on aggregate in the 119th minute, only for Javier Hernandez to hit back almost instantly, converting Januzai’s cross in the dying embers which took the semi-final to a penalty shootout.
Only three of the 10 penalties taken were converted, but the away side came away victorious, as a young Marcos Alonso (on loan from Fiorentina) and Ki Sung-yueng scored from the spot for Sunderland and only Darren Fletcher converted for the Reds.
Fast forward 10 years and 332 days, and Evans came on as a substitute for an injured Victor Lindelof in the 44th minute at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. His brave header was merely a consolation goal in the end for United and Evans, as Son Heung-min’s effort directly from a corner widened the margin between the sides to two, just a few minutes prior.
With too little time remaining on the clock, our Academy graduate glanced Amad's cross into the far corner, adding his name to the record books.
See Jonny Evans's header against Tottenham on Thursday night.
LONGEST GAP BETWEEN GOALS FOR UNITED
1. Cristiano Ronaldo - 12 years 124 days
(10/5/09 v Man City | 11/9/21 v Newcastle)
2. Jonny Evans - 10 years 332 days
(22/1/14 v Sunderland | 19/12/24 v Tottenham)
3. Phil Jones - 5 years 324 days
(8/3/14 v West Brom | 26/1/20 v Tranmere)
4. Rio Ferdinand - 5 years 120 days
(12/1/08 v Newcastle | 12/5/13 v Swansea)
5. Patrice Evra - 3 years 224 days
(10/4/07 v Roma | 20/11/20 v Wigan)
Since the start of the Premier League, courtesy of Opta.