Midfield central to O’Shea’s thinking
That Carling Cup medal is the first item on the order of business, but not the last, says the Manchester United player.
"I'm lucky, I'm only 24 so I've got time to get more medals and I think Manchester United is the place for that. I was relieved to be playing last Sunday I trained before the Liverpool game and played in a reserve game against Everton on the Tuesday, but I didn't know if the manager was going to pick me until two hours before kick-off."
Much is being made of Ruud van Nistelrooy's unhappiness at being dropped, and O'Shea acknowledges the disappointment in the dressing-room.
"For a cup final a manager has to make tough decisions but the team he picked went out and did the job.
Another day he could pick different lads that's what he's paid to do."
Alex Ferguson's considered opinion is that O'Shea can do a job in centre midfield, by the way.
"The manager's always said he can see me doing a job in there, so fingers crossed. I'd have had a run in the team if I hadn't picked up a rib injury, but it was a great feeling to get back for a cup final, it was really enjoyable."
What position does O'Shea feel he knows best? "Good question there're a few answers I could give. Centre-half or centre midfield, I feel I know them best. I've played full-back, I know I can do a job there, but for myself, centre-half or centre midfield."
He learned about centre midfield from one of the best has Roy Keane's departure left the way open for O'Shea at Old Trafford? "It has, but comparing me to Keano I don't want any of that nonsense. He's left a huge legacy at United and you can see what he's still doing up at Celtic, like the match against Rangers. That shows the player he still is.
"He's been a huge influence on me, ever since my first training session with the first team at United. It wasn't a case of 'here's a nice young Irish lad, we'll take care of him'. He was firing the ball at me, firing into tackles, and you learn to cope with that. The respect follows that. He's not just like that with Irish lads, he's like that with signings who've cost £30 million, and that's the level you want to be at.
"We got on well. We had good craic about Munster rugby, hurling teams he had the edge on me there a little bit until last Sunday."
Steve Staunton's arrival means a new start, as O'Shea acknowledges.
"The new lads have been doing really well, they're putting pressure on Steve to make tough decisions. It's a good position for him to be in, to have to choose between the older lads and the new players."
Staunton is charged with getting the team to the finals of a major tournament, something O'Shea has never experienced. However, he's positive about the future.
"Obviously it's a huge disappointment, but you'd probably do yourself damage if you keep looking back.
"You have to look forward, and that's what we plan to do."
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