Given: Raring To Go!
By Tyne-Talk
July 11 2008
Shay Given has promised his future to Newcastle United by insisting he is happy at the club he has been with for 10 years. There had been growing speculation that he would up sticks and join Arsenal as Wenger looks for a new keeper. Given who joined Newcastle in 1997 who has now recovered from an injury plagued season gave final confirmation that he is going nowhere.
He said:
"I don't know where the story came from, I have said all along that I'm extremely happy living and playing here in Newcastle. I want to help to move this club forward.
Hopefully we will get new players in and strengthen the squad. We want to get this place going. I am just raring to go and ready to play football again.
It has been a long close season and it was a long end to the season as well. I was working on fitness towards the end of last season and continued that throughout the summer. I feel as fit and strong as I have ever felt. I have done a lot of rehabilitation with the physio's and been in the gym. Now I am just ready to get back out on the field.
I only had a bit of a break, but even when I was away I was doing my work and training. I'd had a break after I had an operation, so my aim was always to get fit for the start of pre-season, not the end. As I say, I feel as fit as ever, so it has paid off."
given could have taken the chance to move on while still in his prime, and would surely have found many clubs interested, so to me this is a great endorsement of the current state of keegans newcastle