‘This’ former rival defender talks about his failed move to Manchester City

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Jonny Evans insisted he remained calmed about his future at West Bromwich Albion as talks continued for a move away to Manchester City or Arsenal,

Pep Guardiola was very interested in signing the Northern Ireland defender while Arsenal and Leicester City were in the mix too for the former Manchester United player.

Last summer, after an impressive Euros, he was linked with a move to the Emirates. He is no stranger to the media spotlight but insisted that his focus in the run-up to deadline day was solely on regaining his fitness.

‘I’ve been there before in transfer windows,’ Evans told the Daily Telegraph. ‘The last three transfer windows than the one before that.

‘Man United to West Brom happened quite late on. Then the next year after the Euros there was interest from Arsenal. You just deal with it as a footballer.

‘Surprisingly enough, there are a lot of players with speculation and sometimes the press doesn’t always get hold of what goes on. A lot of players go through it.

‘Mine was the fact that Man City made a bid a month or so ago. That heightened that speculation. That was out in the press.

‘But leading up to the end of the window, I was calm about everything and I was just trying to get back to being fit, for wherever I ended up so I could be at the top of my game.’

Evans spent over ten years at Old Trafford where he climbed up the rungs right from the youth level to being a first team player who made over 150 appearances for the club.

Two years ago, he was sold to West Brom. He has now become an increasingly influential figure at the Hawthorns and also currently captains the side.

‘I still think I can push on. That’s my aim, that’s my drive,’ he added. ‘The most important thing is I’m pleased none of this speculation has affected me.

‘It’s made me more determined than ever to try to be a better player. I’m happy.’

The homegrown Evans would have given them Premier League experience and another reliable option for the back three Guardiola has preferred this term, so it was a shock that a club with such wealth did not pursue him harder much earlier in the summer.

“I don’t make the decisions, I’m just sort of someone in the middle with two clubs after me,” Evans admitted.

“Man City first have to decide do they want you, or any club have to decide, and your own club have to decide do they sell you. It doesn’t matter what time it gets done in the window if it gets done at the start or the end.

“You’ve just got to let those decisions be made by two different parties. You’ve got to then make your own decision and it never got to that stage.”

Evans produced an impressive display against the Czech Republic as Northern Ireland secured second place in their group, and a probable playoff place, with a 2-0 victory in which he scored his first international goal in eight years.

Despite having fans in Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger, and Guardiola, Evans has not always garnered admiration from the wider public, though the perception may be beginning to alter after recent performances.

“I’m not at all interested in that, or what people think of me, to be honest,” he claimed.

“The most important thing for me is I push myself hard every day. I’ve got a long drive into training so I think a lot of what I’m going to do that day, set it out and try to carry that out to the letter. Maybe it does raise your profile a bit but it’s not something that interests me.”

Read: City star will not force the club to sell him.