Evra: 'Serie A is so tough!'

By Football Italia staff

Patrice Evra admits he had a “shock” when making his Juventus debut. “Serie A is absolutely not easy! I’ve never worked so hard.”

The Frenchman discussed his long career path with Sky Sport Italia, including a very early spell in Italy with Marsala in Sicily.

“In the neighbourhood where I grew up, football has a fundamental importance. We had nothing else to do. Football saved me and when I had the chance to go to Marsala, it was like a dream.

“I still feel so proud when returning there. I was nobody, just a kid, yet Sicily and Marsala welcomed me with open arms. It will forever be a family to me.

“I had a strange career path, as I never went through a youth academy. I just went from the streets to Manchester United, the France team and now Juve.

“I knew Manchester United from Eric Cantona. I visited the stadium for a game against a fifth division side and there were 76,000 people there. I realised it was a different world.

“At the start I didn’t play much, as you have to be physically strong to play in the Premier League, so I spent the whole summer in the gym.

“Sir Alex Ferguson taught me to understand that winning has to be normal for me. If I didn’t give my all in training, then the managers wouldn’t notice me and I couldn’t get their respect.

“Ferguson was amazing, as the players were afraid of getting hurt! They knew if they got a pass wrong, then later in the locker room they’d have to be careful! Even before an Arsenal game his team talk was ‘don’t ruin my Sunday.’

“I remember in a Champions League match he gave me the captain’s armband. It was an incredible responsibility, but Ferguson said I always had the right words for my teammates.

“When he left Manchester, he said the two players who would become great Coaches were Ryan Giggs and me.”

Evra quit Old Trafford too and revealed the huge difference when joining Juventus.

“In football you never stop learning. I knew a bit about Juve and its history, but it was a shock for me. I heard Zinedine Zidane say he threw up after the first training session, but I thought it was a legend. It wasn’t.

“Coach Max Allegri asked every day how I was and I’d reply: ‘For the moment I am still alive.’ I have never trained so hard in my entire life.

“I heard many people say Serie A is easy. You might think that when you’re outside, but now I’m there, it’s absolutely not true.

“The difference is that in England football is like two boxers and the first to get tired loses the match. In Italy the tactics are fundamental and I remember even at 17 thinking all the Italian teams were so well-prepared.

“An English player can come to Italy and do badly, just as an Italian can, but you have to be intelligent enough to realise they are different Leagues.”

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