Talk about leaving it to the last minute… it was actually the 91st and the 94th. You could say pure luck got them over the line as Jürgen Klopp said afterwards in an interview “If we continue to play like that, we won’t win the Champions League” but in football, it’s not always the best team that takes home the trophy if we take even Chelsea’s Champion’s League success last year. A good deal of luck in the game is required, so who knows how far Dortmund will go? Have they used up all their luck on this one game. They’ll be hoping not.

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Sometimes folks ask per email if Shay is fit, etc. and is that the reason why he’s not getting back into the Aston Villa team, etc. but he is ‘top-fit’ and raring to go if and when he’s called upon. We @ shay-given.com hope of course with Shay that that moment won’t be long now. Isn’t that what the ‘Monkey said, when the train ran over its tail?’… “It won’t be long now”. My headmaster in school used to always tell that one, and I honestly never got it till I was an adult. Okay, please keep comments about my IQ to a minimum here. Thanks.

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There’s a bloke wearing a mask of Shay in this video? Can anybody firstly find the guy wearing the ‘Shay Given’ mask and sometimes the mask slips away, and you can see whose behind it. Full points to anyone finding the mask and identifying the person behind it.

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Shay gets another Cup game under his belt and does his selection justice with two important stops during the game. Recall into the first team now? Yes please.
Check out the video highlights of the game from YouTube:

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Click here to view the video interview online

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Shay gets another game under his belt helping Aston Villa see of Norwich in a convincing win away from home. It was neck and neck until ‘we believe’ Shay’s World class save from the corner after the interval at point blank range. What a reflex save. It gave Villa a bite to see Shay bang that away and I believe it was tonic in Villa’s boots as they went on to run out convincing winners sticking in 4 goals away from home in a tight encounter. Villa fans were in fine voice and gave Villa almost the ‘we’re playing at home-feeling’ at times. Well done Villa in progressing to the next round. It would be nice to see a Wembley appearance for Shay and the gang.

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Shay gave some more perspective to his retirement from international football here.

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Kenny Dalglish: “I remember speaking to his dad, who told me he’d be a top-class goalkeeper. We felt he had a chance of achieving that,” Dalglish said.

“His dad must have been an even better judge than us, because he was exactly right. He saw Shay’s potential earlier than we did. At that point we only thought he had a chance, his dad knew he’d make it and told us so. ”Shay was absolutely brilliant for Newcastle for a long, long time,” “He was brilliant when I was there and he was brilliant long after I’d gone. He’s a legend at Newcastle. I don’t think any manager could ever complain about his effort or performances. He’s honest, genuine and straightforward. He’s lively around the training ground too, he loves joining in the banter.”

Full story here from THE INDEPENDENT

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“It’s so lonely round the fields of Athenry”. Shay called time on his 16 years service to Ireland today announcing on Twitter the end of an era: “After a lot of thought and consideration, I have made the most difficult decision to retire from international football. It’s been a great honour and privilege to play and on occasion captain the team. I shall remain a huge fan of the team as I have been all my life. I wish them every success for the future. I wish to thank all the players, managers, staff and most importantly the most wonderful fans in the world. Finally I would like to thank my wife Jane, my 2 amazing kids and my entire family for their unwavering support over the 16 years and 125 caps.”

Interestingly what Shay didn’t say but what appeared on the FAI website was “Given also continued to show his support and dedication to the squad by saying that should there be an emergency, he would happily return to assist with goalkeeping duties. Giovanni Trapattoni and Marco Tardelli have said that they are extremely grateful that Given has said that he would make himself available should they need him. Trapattoni said, ‘I understand the difficult decision that Shay had to make, and appreciate all of his efforts during his international career. He is a strong player, with a great character and his love of playing for his country always shone through. It has been a pleasure to work with him during my time with the team.  I wish him the very best in his future.”

So maybe we MIGHT just MIGHT see Shay play one last game sometime in the next years? Who knows. But no matter what Shay, you’ve done us proud, given us 16 years and 125 games of football in the green and white. You’ll be missed.

Shay holds 125 caps for his country making him the highest capped Irish player in history!

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I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like to see James Nolan’s (21) coffin leaving the church with the ‘fields of Athenry’ being sung. It must’ve been difficult for anyone, especially Jame’s family and friends. The Independent wrote: “Tears streamed down the faces of mourners and Shay Given’s face crumpled with emotion as the sorrowful strains of ‘The Fields of Athenry’ accompanied the removal of the coffin from the church, as all recalled the spirit of the Irish fans throughout the championships and how amongst them had stood James Nolan.” Story link here

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