Toon Record-Breaker Looks Back
Shay Given: "I would be lying if I did not admit that I had had a little look at just which teams are left in the UEFA Cup. Yes, there are some good teams, but I still fancy us against any of them.
"But it is dangerous to look too far ahead. We looked too far ahead after we beat Sporting Lisbon at St James' Park a couple of years ago and then when Kieron Dyer got us the away goal in the second leg in Portugal.
"We perhaps started thinking ahead to the semi-finals and got done by the four goals Sporting Lisbon scored and we went out of the UEFA Cup.
"That night in Lisbon was a bad night for us all round and a direct contrast to when Louis van Gaal last brought a team here for a competitive European match 10 years ago."
After tonight's game at St James' Park and the return with AZ in the DSB Stadium a week tonight, Given will have joined the legendary Bobby Mitchell on 408 appearances for United.
This will leave only six players in front of him, and fellow keeper Jimmy Lawrence's club record of 496 well within his sights.
496 Jimmy Lawrence 1904-22
472 Frank Hudspeth 1910-29
457 Frank Clark 1962-75
432 Bill McCracken 1904-23
431 Alf McMichael 1949-63
412 David Craig 1962-78