Football
Kevin Palmer 9y

Shay Given admits to losing his 2011 Man City FA Cup winners medal

Aston Villa goalkeeper Shay Given was an FA Cup winner with Manchester City four years ago, but he has admitted that he does not know where his less-than-prized piece of gold from the 2011 final now lays.

Given warmed the City bench on a day when Joe Hart kept goal and City ended their long wait for a major trophy, with Given conceding the prize he was presented with at Wembley means little to him.

"I've got an FA Cup winners' medal somewhere, but I don't even know where it is if I'm being honest," said the keeper who left the Manchester club in search of first team football at Aston Villa a few weeks after their Wembley win against Stoke. "Maybe it went onto eBay or something!

"It was nice to be part of obviously winning it with Man City, but when you don't play it doesn't have the same value to it and delighted obviously for the team and for the club itself but you don't really get that feeling that you've done anything."

Given's less than successful story in the FA Cup is completed by his appearance as a losing finalist with Newcastle in 1998, before he was dropped for the final a year later despite playing a key role in getting the North East club to a Wembley date against Treble chasing Manchester United.

"Do you ever get over being dropped from an FA Cup final," he asked. "Ruud Gullit was the manager at the time and he didn't even tell me himself that he was going to leave me out after I had played in every match up to the final. He got the goalkeeping coach to tell me I wasn't playing.

"It was a bit of a slap in the face to say the least, but you can't look back in football, you've just got to look forward and at the end of your career maybe look back and think you were harshly done by or whatever, I don't know what way you want to put it."

Villa's progress in this season's FA Cup has been eased by the fine displays of Given and while American stopper Brad Guzan is still Villa's Premier League keeper, their high profile back-up has shown in each round of their FA Cup run that he is still a keeper to be reckoned with and he is relishing the chance to prove his worth all over again.

"I'm still fit, still able to play I think and I've done well in some of the games as well so it's been a boost for me personally," added the keeper who has recently returned to international duty with the Republic of Ireland.

"I have one year left on my contract at Villa and ideally I'd like to stay here and play, but maybe we'll sit down in the summer again and see what the thoughts are of the manager here.

"It feels like I have come a bit closer to playing again because the new manager because he has made it clear that everyone has a chance to play now, no matter what has gone before. It would be great to finish the season in the FA Cup final and hopefully win it. We feel like we have a big chance against Liverpool at Wembley so let's try and take it."

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