Middlesbrough winger Stewart Downing has put pen to paper a new deal which will see him stay at the Riverside for the next five years. The 23 year old left winger was rumoured not to be happy with the way the club were progressing, and was linked in the press with a move to Tottenham Hotspur in the winter transfer window.
However the arrival of 12 million pound signing Afonso Alves from Heerenveen has been enough to prove to Downing that the club are ambitious and have the resources to compete with the biggies.
Downing, 23, has been at Boro all his footballing life, barring a brief loan spell with Sunderland in 2003. He has made appearances for England B, England U-21 as well as the senior national side, where he competes with Joe Cole for a spot on the left flank.