Patrice Evra will never forget his Manchester United debut, he is just glad he didn't go straight back home to France.

Bought from Monaco for US$10million in January 2006, Evra made his first United appearance against Manchester City at Eastlands.

He was sick before the game as he unsuccessfully tried to digest a plateful of pasta ahead of the lunchtime kick-off. And once the match started it got even worse.

United lost 4-1, Evra was substituted at half-time, having taking a fearful battering by Trevor Sinclair, and it seemed his stay in England would be brief.

"I remember that game very, very well," he said.

"At one point the ball went out from a corner and I remember thinking, Pat, what are you doing here?

"The game was so quick, everyone was so strong and the whole thing was just too difficult."

Thankfully, Evra did not give in to his immediate temptation and Sir Alex Ferguson kept faith with him.

And, thanks to doggedness, perseverance and hard work, the France international is now established as one of the best full-backs in England.

"I really wanted to play for this club, so I just decided to work even harder and thankfully, it has worked," he said.

Yet Evra has still not enjoyed that much success against City.

Although he got revenge over tomorrow's opponents the following season, last term the Blues recorded a domestic double over the fierce local rivals for the first time in almost 40 years.

And since then, Mark Hughes' arrival as manager has coincided with a major influx of cash through the Abu Dhabi-backed consortium who took control from the now disgraced former Thailand Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra in August.

With Robinho restored to City's ranks, supporters in the Blue half of the City are even more optimistic of what would be a fifth win in seven meetings with United at Eastlands.

As a Champions League winner and back-to-back title holder, Evra should be beyond such petty rivalry.

But he knows tomorrow's encounter offers the perfect chance for United to muscle their way back into the title race and stamp their authority over City once more.

"It is a massive game," he said.

"It is very important for the players and everyone connected with the club.

"We won the league last season but Manchester City took six points from us.

"We don't need to prove anything but we do need to show they are not better than us."