Patrice Evra believes Diogo Dalot is Man United’s most consistent player | OneFootball

Patrice Evra believes Diogo Dalot has been Manchester United’s most consistent player this season.

Speaking to Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, Evra praised the 25-year-old fullback for being a “constant player, with great regularity.”

United’s season has been devastated by an almost unprecedent injury crisis with virtually every player in Erik ten Hag’s squad being ruled out at various stages through injury or illness. Over the course of the year, there have been over 60 different individual cases, with key players like Lisandro Martinez and Luke Shaw suffering multiple long-term absences.

No team in the league has suffered more ‘time-loss injuries’ than United (a time-loss injury is defined as one that results in a player missing at least one injury), with only Chelsea and Newcastle coming close – two teams who have also underperformed in the league, relative to expectation.

Ten Hag has compared the effect of this unrelenting injury list to that of “swimming with your hands tied behind your back”.

Dalot has proven to be a rare buoyancy aid to his manager with the Portuguese fullback one of the only players to not fall victim to injury at Old Trafford this season.

As a result, the 25 year old has been an ever present in the starting eleven with only Andre Onana playing more minutes than him this season – a testament to the Portuguese international’s durability as goalkeeper will invariably top this statistic due to the less strenuous nature of their position.

But Dalot has not simply played every game, he has largely played well within this demanding schedule, even when surrounded by a disjointed and patched up defensive unit, as he has been in most games (Ten Hag revealed last week he had been forced to field “32 different backlines” following the 4-0 loss to Crystal Palace with a centre-back pairing of Casemiro and Jonny Evans).

Which is why Evra is correct when he singles out Dalot as United’s Mr Consistent this season.

“For me, Diogo Dalot is a constant player, with great regularity. What I like most when I watch him play is the energy he puts on the field, he always wants to get up the pitch and never gives up, and that’s why in my opinion he has been Manchester United’s most regular player this season.

“Even in games where the team didn’t do so well, he always demonstrated his quality. He has incredible physical power and is not afraid to face 1-1 or even 2-1 situations, he always accepts the challenge. For me, these are the fundamental characteristics that a full-back should have.”

“Furthermore, Diogo is a very good person and a humble boy”, Evra concluded.

The former United star, who arrived at Old Trafford at the same age as Dalot only turned a few months ago, went on to become one of the best fullbacks in Europe and a key part of a period of incredible success at the club after a forgettable start to life in England.

While Dalot suffered a similar experience in Manchester following his move from Porto, he will be hoping he can continue to follow in Evra’s footsteps and build on his progress this season.

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