Steve Evans has revealed how he could have joined Cambridge United, the side beaten by his Crawley team on Tuesday.

Evans was offered the chance to replace Gary Brabin in January by former Cambridge chairman George Rolls but turned the job down.

Evans said: “I have kept quiet about it until now but I had a private meeting with Cambridge officials and was offered the job but it just didn’t feel right.

“In many respects it broke my heart because my wife’s family are big fans and they would have been desperate for me to come and take over Cambridge United.

“It is a club with a fantastic tradition and any player would be proud to play for them.”

Brabin guided United to the play-off final but they lost to Torquay and he was sacked in July.

New boss Martin Ling resigned after a week but was re-instated when Rolls left the club earlier this month.

But there still appears to be some bitterness lingering from Brabin’s former assistant Paul Carden who captained Cambridge on Tuesday in the 1-0 defeat.

As the players began to walk off at the final whistle Carden booted a clearance which hit Evans on the chest.

Evans added: “I’m disappointed that Paul Carden decided to smash the ball at my face when the play had stopped for ten seconds. He is obviously quite sore that I was offered his job and his pal’s in January but I had the courtesy to turn it down.”