Sunderland defender Danny Higginbotham insists he has not received an offer from Stoke and is more than happy to stay on Wearside anyway.Higginbotham only left the Potters 12 months ago, but he has been linked with a return to the Britannia Stadium following his former club's promotion to the Premier League.
However, the 29-year-old has not been contacted by Stoke and is refusing to talk about a move unless told he is surpluss to requirements at Sunderland.
"I've heard nothing from Stoke. I'm at a huge club here and it's really going places," Higginbotham told the Sunderland Echo.
"You can see the players we've brought in and I think they're a sign of some big things happening at the football club.
"I'm concentrating on being here. I want to be part of this football club and what it's all about.
"Until anybody tells me different, then I really want to be here."
Higginbotham has played in all of Sunderland's pre-season games and he is looking forward to playing his part in what he expects to be an exciting season for the club.
He said: "I see a lot of potential here. It gets harder in the Premier League every year, but us staying up last year has created the opportunity to bring the players in that we have this year.
"Hopefully we have the platform now to push on and I really want to be a part of that.
"The new players have not come to be part of a survival scrap - they want a lot more than that and so do all of us."
More Football News from TEAMtalk
Comment 1 - 2 of 2
Have to agree with Malcolm on the huge club point. Sunderland have very impressive facilities in the academy and training ground, a lovely 49000 capacity stadium with the prospect of more when required. However, we do not have the global market that the really big clubs do. I'm sure though the likes of Liverpool; would love our facilities. I also have to agree about us being a yo-yo club. We do have a history of being up and down too often. As Malcolm doesn't nail his colours to the mast we can't tell from which level of expertise he talks. Could be top 4; could be Spurs, Everton or Villa; could be delusional and be a scum mag. Or he may be from the lower divisions. In acknowledging our impressive fan base he offers a glimmer of intelligence only to let himself down with his comments regarding Mr Keane. All great managers start off with no experience. What they need to succeed is undeniably talent but also an understanding board who will be prepared to support him to the hilt. We have been yo-yo. Who knows, we may continue to be yo-yo. But with a manager who has shown he is not afraid to take chances, make bold changes and stand up for his players while also punishing those who stray. He needs to be better in the transfer market after some of the flops he bought last season, but already this season he has shown that he is learning this aspect of his craft too. So Malcolm, tell us we're yo-yo and not as huge as some would love to think we are, but leave Mr Keane alone for fear you get caught in the middle of subject you're obviously not qualified to talk about.
sunderland a huge club my ----. they keep bouncing up and down. big support yes one of the best. but cannot sustain a premier league presence.
as for the manager not experienced enough to keep them going
Please login to post a comment
Not already a Yahoo! user ? Sign up to get a free Yahoo! Account