Newcastle's Ryan Taylor sought the advice of Alan Shearer and Michael Owen as he looked to bounce back from the knee injury which has cost him almost two years of his career. The 29-year-old Newcastle utility man then asked renowned American knee specialist Richard Steadman to repair the cruciate ligament he ruptured twice in seven months.
He told the Shields Gazette: "I spoke to Michael, Jimmy Bullard, Al and Jamie Redknapp. Because I knew it was such big surgery for me career-wise, I had to make sure it was right.
"I spoke to people who had been over there and come back from the same injury.
"They gave me the green light - everyone was so positive about the place. I was like, 'Come on, let's get over there'."
