 Given playing for Manchester City in 2010 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Séamus John James Given[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 20 April 1976[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Lifford, Ireland | ||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Lifford Celtic | |||
| 1991–1994 | Celtic | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1994–1997 | Blackburn Rovers | 2 | (0) |
| 1994 | → Swindon Town (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 1996 | → Swindon Town (loan) | 5 | (0) |
| 1996 | → Sunderland (loan) | 17 | (0) |
| 1997–2009 | Newcastle United | 354 | (0) |
| 2009–2011 | Manchester City | 50 | (0) |
| 2011–2015 | Aston Villa | 37 | (0) |
| 2013–2014 | → Middlesbrough (loan) | 16 | (0) |
| 2015–2017 | Stoke City | 8 | (0) |
| Total | 489 | (0) | |
| International career | |||
| Republic of Ireland U21 | 5 | (0) | |
| 1996–2016 | Republic of Ireland | 134 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2014–2015 | Aston Villa (assistant) | ||
| 2020 | Derby County (co-interim) | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Séamus John James Given (born 20 April 1976) is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Irish goalkeepers of all time.[4][5] With 134 caps, he is the second-most-capped Republic of Ireland player.
Given began his career at Celtic; however, he never made a first-team appearance. Released by Celtic, he was signed by Blackburn Rovers on a free transfer in 1994. Whilst on loan from Blackburn, he was part of both the Sunderland team who won the Football League First Division title in 1995–96 and the Swindon Town team who won the Football League Second Division title that same season. He was signed by Newcastle United in 1997 for a fee of £2.5 million, and there he began competing to be a first-choice Premier League goalkeeper. Given was part of the teams who were runners-up in the 1998 and 1999 FA Cup campaigns, and was named in the Premier League Team of the Season for the 2001–02 and 2005–06 seasons. He played in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup with Newcastle, and was involved in the club's title challenge in 2001–02. Although he submitted a transfer request during the 2000–01 campaign after losing his position in the starting line-up, it was denied, and Given went on to regain his place.
On 1 February 2009, Given transferred to Manchester City for £6 million on a four-and-a-half-year contract. While Given was at Manchester City, the club, after finishing third in the Premier League, qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in its history, as well as winning the FA Cup – though he did not appear in the league in the campaign by which City reached the Champions League, nor did he play in the FA Cup. On 18 July 2011, he joined Aston Villa for a fee believed to be around £3.5 million, signing a five-year contract. Given joined Stoke City in July 2015, remaining with the club for two seasons.
Having surpassed the total of 100 caps required for membership, he is part of the FIFA Century Club. Given gained his first international cap in 1996 and played in goal during every match for his country during the 2002 FIFA World Cup campaign,[6] helping them reach the knockout stage. He was later on the pitch in Paris when the Republic of Ireland were knocked out of the play-offs for a spot in the 2010 FIFA World Cup by France before helping his team qualify for UEFA Euro 2012. Given played at UEFA Euro 2012, and was selected in Martin O'Neill's 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2016, but did not appear in any of Ireland's four matches at the tournament. Given is the second-highest capped Republic of Ireland player (after Robbie Keane). He announced his international retirement in July 2016, having amassed 134 caps for his country and kept 52 clean sheets.[7][8][9]
- ^ "List of Players under Written Contract Registered Between 01/07/2015 and 31/07/2015". The Football Association. p. 14. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- ^ Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Mainstream Publishing. p. 168. ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0.
- ^ "Shay Given: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- ^ "Who is Ireland's best goalkeeper of the past 40 years?". Irish Independent. 1 September 2014. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ Fennessy, Paul (29 July 2016). "Shay Given's consummate professionalism turned him into Ireland's greatest ever goalkeeper". The 42. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ Dart, James (22 August 2007). "Does Shay Given really carry holy water with him at every match?". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 22 August 2007.
- ^ "Shay Given". EU-Football. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
- ^ Football Association of Ireland (28 July 2016). "11,121 minutes played, 134 caps, 52 clean sheets, 3 major tournaments, 1 Shay Given". Twitter. Retrieved 12 August 2016.
- ^ "Information about Republic of Ireland Soccer Caps". Soccer Ireland. Retrieved 23 June 2016.