Southgate adamant over Downing's future
by Richard Field, 20 July 2008
Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate says transfer speculation surrounding Stewart Downing is only bringing his squad closer together.
Downing’s future has been a constant source of speculation with Aston Villa the latest Premier League club to be linked with the 23-year-old, who Southgate does not want to sell.
“We always say within our club that anything that comes from outside can’t hurt us,” Southgate said.
“We’ve not even spoken about it and everybody who’s here is very settled and everybody’s looking forward to the start of the season.”
Downing was a bright light in an otherwise lacklustre England performance against Trinidad & Tobago last month, which has put him firmly in the shop window according to the Boro boss.
“We’ve said all along that he’s a fantastic player, we’ve known his quality. Inevitably he’ll be linked, whether it's genuine or mischievous,” added Southgate.
“But he’s signed a long contract in the middle of last season, he’s very, very happy here and we want to build a team that encourages him to be here even longer.”