Season over for Silvestre
17 Sep 2007 - 08:30:30
Manchester United have confirmed that French defender Mikael Silvestre will miss the rest of the season due to a knee injury sustained in the 1-0 victory at Everton.
The 30-year-old had to be stretchered from the field just before half-time and a subsequent scan confirmed cruciate ligament damage that has ended Silvestre's season prematurely.
The loss of Silvestre leaves Patrice Evra as the only fit left-back among the United squad, following Gabriel Heinze's recent departure for Real Madrid.
Meanwhile, United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has hailed centre-back Nemanja Vidic, whose superb late header sealed the victory at Goodison Park.
"Vidic is a marvellous centre-back," Ferguson told Sky Sports News.
"Andy Johnson and Yakubu are a real handful and it is not going to be easy for anyone coming here, so it's great for us to get the three points.
"It was a strong performance by us, rather than a great performance. The players understand that, until everyone is back, we have to play really well as a team.
"It looked to me as if we were heading for a draw, but Nemanja popped up and he has simply got that determination, he has got that courage and conviction of scoring in the box to get goals like that."