Vida delight at killer blow

Nemanja Vidic was delighted that his first United goal of the season came at such a crucial moment as the Reds snatched a late victory on Saturday.

Sir Alex Ferguson says the Serbian has “a bit of the Brucies about him”, and that was certainly evident at Goodison. Much like former Reds centre-back Steve Bruce, Vidic possesses determination and bravery in abundance, prominent attributes that make him one of the Premier League’s finest defenders, but they are also major assets to attacking situations.

“I have had a couple of chances this season and haven’t managed to score,” Vidic told MUTV. “This was probably the best moment to get my first goal of the season with less than ten minutes to go. We’ve won, so I’m happy.”

It capped a wonderful defensive display from the solid Serb, who, alongside Rio Ferdinand, kept Everton striker’s Yakubu and Andy Johnson at bay. But Vidic modestly claims United’s solidarity was a team effort.

“We played like a team,” he said. “It’s not just two players, everyone played well in defence and that helped us get the result. Yakubu is strong and Johnson is quick and likes the ball in the channels. But we knew about them and stopped them from getting chances.

“With our ability going forward we knew that we’d be able to score, and we did. We came for the win and got it. Sometimes you have to make sure you don’t lose a goal.

“It’s always difficult after the international break,” he added. “We knew that it would be hard against Everton and that we’d need to play a compact game. We had to do that today.”

Thanks to Vidic’s intervention, United now have three consecutive 1-0 victories and following a shaky start to the Reds’ title defence Vidic is looking forward with plenty of optimism.

“We started badly this season,” he admits. “But now we have three wins in a row and I think we’re improving every time. I hope that in our next game we improve again. I’m looking forward to the rest of the season.”