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8 March 2012, 13:44 | Updated: 30 March 2016, 13:50
Ryan Taylor has signed a two-year contract extension at Newcastle United - keeping him at St James' Park til June 2015.
The 27-year-old, who can play in a variety of roles across defence and midfield, arrived on Tyneside in February 2009 from Wigan Athletic and made ten appearances as the Magpies were relegated from the Premier League.
The Liverpudlian played a key role in getting Newcastle back into the top flight at the first attempt, but his 2010/11 campaign was disrupted by injury and he was limited to just a handful of games.
It is this season where Taylor has really flourished, however, first being a regular at left-back before more recently taking up a role on the right-hand side of midfield.
He scored the only goal of the game in the Tyne-Wear derby at the Stadium of Light back in August with a free-kick, and to date, Taylor has missed just two of United's 27 Premier League fixtures this season.
Taylor said:
"I'm over the moon. It's been a quiet one to get done and didn't take long.
I stated not so long ago that I would love to stay here, and that has always been the case. Playing every week helps, and having a good manager has been a massive plus for me as well.
When the gaffer came in first of all I was injured, so I've had to prove myself to him. But this season has been great for me on a personal note, and to have played in every Premier League game bar two or three then it's been a great season."
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew said:
"I am delighted to secure a contract extension for Ryan.
He has been outstanding for me this season wherever I have asked him to play.
Ryan is a fantastic player who is firmly in the hearts of our fans, not only for his derby winner against Sunderland but also because of some excellent performances in the Newcastle shirt.
On the back of agreeing new deals last week with Tim Krul and Fabricio Coloccini, this gives us a huge boost going into the final 11 games, and hopefully Ryan can help us make this a truly memorable season."