Shearer desperate to end the 35-year wait

Bob Moncur was the last United captain to lift silverware - and Shearer wants to be the next.

The Magpies, who tonight host Olympique Marseille in the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup, haven't been this far in European competition since Moncur inspired his side to Fairs Cup glory against Hungarians Ujpest Dozsa in 1969.

And Shearer, destined to retire at the end of next season, declared: "Bob keeps reminding me that he was the last skipper to lift a trophy for United and, in a nice way, I hope to change that.

"After being knocked out of the Champions League, which was a huge disappointment, the players sat down, had a meeting and said the only way to get over that defeat was to win the UEFA Cip. That hasn't changed.

"This game is huge. It's massive for the players, for the fans and for the club. It's a great opportunity for us to get into the history books.

"It's been far too long that this club has been without silverware, especially when you consider the size of the club. It just isn't right.

"I'm 33 and I wasn't even born when this club won the Fairs Cup. I'm getting to the end of my career, and it shows the amount of time we've gone without a trophy.

"But we have a great chance to try to change that now. Instead of reading about other players doing it, we have a chance to read about ourselves in the future.''

While the money men at St. James' Park pin their hopes on a fourth-place Premiership finish and a return to the riches of the Champions League next season, Shearer unashamedly admits that a trophy comes first in his book.

He said: "We're midway through the season after not being at our fluent best and we have a great opportunity to turn it into a great season. For me, that would mean winning this competition and finishing fourth.

"The next three or four weeks are huge and we hope to be going into the summer with silverware and finishing fourth.

"In an ideal world we would like both, but if I had to come down either way, I'd choose silverware. The Champions League means a hell of a lot of money for the club, but it's medals we're after. It would be fantastic if we could win some silverware.

"A big priority of ours has to be to keep a clean sheet. We fancy ourselves to score goals, home and away, and that would give us a great chance of going through.

"It's ironic, because if we'd got through to the group stage of the Champions League, we might have been paired with Marseille. They're a good side - they have to be to have beaten Inter Milan home and away.

"They'll be a tough side to beat, but so are we and we'll have 52,000 fans screaming us on. The supporters can play a big part.

"We've slowly improved in each round. We'll have to do that again, but we're capable of it. It'll be our biggest test, but they'll have a big test themselves.''

Shearer is relishing his clash with an old adversary, former Manchester United goalkeeper Fabien Barthez.

"My record against him isn't bad - I've scored one or two against him over the years,'' said Shearer.

"He's still a top keeper. He had a tough time towards the end of his Man. United career, but he seems to have got back to his best. It'll be a good battle and I'm looking forward to it.''

With two yellow cards to his name, Shearer knows one more over the two legs would either rule him out of the return at the Stade Velodrome, or the final itself in Gothenburg on May 19.

But he insists he won't hold back. "I'm aware of it, but it won't change my game,'' he promised.

"There's too much at stake. If I get booked, I have to face the consequences. It would be horrible to miss out, it wouldn't be nice, but I can't afford to change my game or pull out of challenges.

"That's not me or the other lads. We have to go in fully committed. If that means getting a yellow card, so be it.

"As far as I'm concerned, if we're beaten here, we might as well have been beaten in the first round. The aim is to get to the final and win it. Nobody remembers semi-finalists or finalists. People only remember winners.''

Shearer is confident that former Sunderland striker Michael Bridges, on loan from Leeds for the rest of the season and hoping to win a permanent deal with his boyhood idols, is capable of filling the void left by the loss of Craig Bellamy through injury.

Like Shearer, Bridges was discovered by North-East superscout Jack Hixon.

Shearer said: "It's disappointing for Craig and for the team, but what a giant opportunity for someone to come in and make a name for himself.

"When Michael came on against Aston Villa on Sunday, on the right side of midfield with ten men, it was in difficult circumstances, but he did very well.

"Whether he plays or Shola Ameobi or Michael Chopra play, I don't know, but it would be great to see him succeed because he's a nice lad and an honest lad."

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