Jose Enrique rules out signing for Sunderland

Dec 1 2009 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

Fabricio Coloccini is another in the shop window after finally showing glimpses of the composure which made him an Argentina international.

Enrique believes that the determination to right last season’s wrongs mean that none of United’s players will be tempted to leave when the January transfer window swings open.

“I say all the time when people ask me

‘I love this club’,” he said. “It is normal that our players are linked with other clubs because we are playing well.

“But I am happy here, I want to make up for the mistakes we made last season. I think when you are happy with the city and happy with the club, you would not want to leave.

I know this summer all the papers are linking me and all the other players with all sorts of teams but I’m not interested.

“From the first moment I’ve been here I wanted to play here and I never thought about going anywhere else.”

In his third season at United, Enrique is enjoying a run of games unbroken by injury and believes that boss Chris Hughton can take much of the credit for coaxing the best out of him.

Indeed the former Villarreal man rates Hughton as the best of the five managers he has played under since joining the club in the summer of 2007.

“The manager has been very important. Chris has a big opportunity now and I think for me, he is the best manager that I have had in my three seasons at Newcastle,” he said.

“He understands football and the players are happy to play for him.

“It is the first time he has had the opportunity to do the job properly and he has proved he is a good manager.

“He is the right man for Newcastle at the moment.”