Patrice Evra respectively, and were replaced by Gaël Givet and Hugo Ibarra, the latter joining the club on loan. In the 2003–04 league season, Deschamps installed Evra as a vice-captain and he responded by appearing in 33 matches and providing four assists. Monaco spent six months from September to March in first place, but, like last season, conceded the top spot to Lyon as the season wore on. Evra made his UEFA Champions League debut on 17 September 2003 in the team's opening group stage match against PSV. Evra played the entire match in a 2–1 win. He appeared in all six
Patrice Evra from injury and, due to Domenech preferring Mikaël Silvestre as the incumbent's back-up, Evra went without a call-up for almost two years and, consequently, missed the 2006 World Cup. In October 2007, the defender explained to "L'Équipe" that the World Cup snub "gave me my determination". Evra returned to the team in November 2006 for the team's friendly match against Greece. He appeared as a half-time substitute for Abidal as France won the match 1–0. After going another year without representing France, Evra began appearing as a regular under Domenech in 2007. On 28 May 2008, he was included in