Jonny Evans has already experienced what Erik ten Hag wants Manchester United to implement in US

Few would have expected Jonny Evans' return to Carrington to result in a short-term deal being signed at Manchester United.

However, when the Reds announced the centre-back who was most recently at Leicester City, had been brought in so he could feature in pre-season fixtures, the immediate response was one of shock. While held in good regard by United supporters, the 35-year-old appears to be coming to the end of his career and on the surface this seemed to be a move which only benefitted the player.

If you look closer though, Erik ten Hag may have made a smart decision to welcome back the centre-back. During the 2014 US pre-season tour, Louis van Gaal was on the lookout for defenders who could fit into his new system.

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Like Ten Hag, Van Gaal was not wanting his central defensive players to hoof the ball upfield, instead he wanted them to play out from the back and help play an important role in attacks. Evans was earmarked on the tour as a player who could do just that.

When asked if he had found it difficult to incorporate a new style during pre-season, Evans told The Guardian: "It is different but the good thing is the manager has taken time with us and not just thrown us into a system, and said deal with that.

"We have been watching videos of ourselves in defensive and attacking play, and he has been telling us: ‘You can do this and that better’. People get obsessed with formations over whether it is a three or a five but the philosophy stays the same when you are playing out from the back.

"A lot of teams have three at the back and