Born on this day in 1976 is Irish shot-stopper, Shay Given. The keeper arrived at Sunderland as a teenage sensation, and was crucial in helping Sunderland win promotion- despite looking like a young boy in his oversized goalie top...
Given started his professional career hoping to gain some first team experience in a then-fourth in the league side Celtic. However, after not quite having the season he initially anticipated, Given was released by his first club before signing for Blackburn Rovers.
Rovers had a successful spell while Given was there, but he was never able to take on the role of first team keeper. England international Tim Flowers was in his prime back in the 90’s.
During his time with Blackburn, Shay went on a few loan spells around the country – the first of which being two loans to Swindon Town. He was second-choice in his first spell with the Robins, and didn’t make an appearance.
However, Given was loaned back to the Robins, and made five appearances for the first team as they won the 1995/96 Division Two title. He returned to Blackburn with a bit more first team experience, but it would be another loan spell which gave Given the breakout season he needed.
Only a few months later, Given came to Sunderland. During his stint on Wearside in 1996, he kept 12 clean sheets out of the 17 games he played under Peter Reid– helping the Black Cats earn promotion back to the Premier League. One of the standout performances was a 1-0 win away to Barnsley, where Given was injured in the first half but played the full 90 minutes.
He was still a teenager when he made his debut for the Lads, with fans citing his inexperience as a major mistake by Reid. He was given his first start away to Leicester, on TV- replacing Alec Chamberlain, who was in good form himself. He kept a clean sheet in a goalless draw, showing immense quality beyond his years.
His performances in the North East impressed the newly appointed Newcastle manager Kenny Dalglish, who’d managed Given at Blackburn. Despite the keeper wanting to come to Roker Park, and Reidy wanting to sign the developing young keeper, we couldn’t get the deal over the line and he made the controversial move to Tyneside.
Despite his Mag connections, Shay is still highly thought of at Sunderland. The keeper was 19 when he was on loan here, and remains one of the biggest 'what could have been' signings of recent years.
He would only play 17 games for Sunderland but his form between the sticks would be credited and earn him cult hero status with fans.
After 11 years on Tyneside, and after being hailed as one of Newcastle’s best keepers, Given began assessing his options ready for a move. Soon after his lawyers announced this, a fee around £7 million was agreed – and he made a move to Manchester City.
The keeper did not leave quietly, raising concerns about his former club’s lack of determination to keep him after such a long stint on the books.
Not long after his arrival, Joe Hart left City on loan and Given was awarded the number one squad number for the 2009/10 season. Soon after, he made his 400th league appearance and, from then on performed well, both keeping clean sheets and saving penalties on a regular basis.
Despite his well-rounded performances, Shay was dropped from the first team squad, subsequently being replaced by Hart. This prepped him for a move to Villa. He capped off all North East clubs in the top divisions by signing on loan for Middlesbrough in 2013, but he would eventually hang up his gloves in 2017 after two years at Stoke.
