Given: I have to give Villa my all

Shay Given has described his international retirement as “the biggest football decision you will ever make” but made clear that, for a combination of reasons, he felt now was the right time to pass on Ireland’s No 1 shirt.

Speaking via a conference call to Irish journalists who are in Belgrade for tonight’s friendly against Serbia — officially now the first match of the post-Given era — the Donegal man offered insights into the thinking behind his momentous decision to stand down after appearing 125 times, over a period of 16 years, for his country.

“It was a big decision and the biggest football decision you will ever make,” he said. “I have been thinking about it for a while, for weeks and months. And I just felt now was the right time to make the decision before the new [World Cup] campaign starts.