Camara on signing his new deal

Last updated : 23 August 2006 By Paul Farrington

Camara told the club's official website: "This is a great day for me and I'm absolutely delighted to have my future sorted at the beginning of what promises to be a great campaign.

"There was interest from other clubs but I am more settled at Wigan than I have been at any other team in my entire career. I'm also playing the best the football of my career and for me the credit lays with the manager Paul Jewell, who has shown me he knows how to get the best out of me.

"The manager is a special person and a great coach. Wigan is a club that is going places under his leadership and he's told me I'm a big part of those plans. That kind of faith in my ability is a great boost to my confidence and made me feel wanted. That is why I am so keen to stay at Wigan.

"The manager has signed some fantastic players over the summer and we now look like a really strong team. Obviously the arrival of Emile Heskey has been a massive plus for me personally. Playing off a big strong forward suits my style of play perfectly and I think we'll score a lot of goals.

"Wigan is an ambitious club and I am an ambitious person, which is why I am staying here. I am happy at Wigan, I am playing the best football of my career, I am settled in the area, I have a good relationship with the supporterts and I think the partnership with Emile Heskey is going to bear a lot of results this season. Why on earth would I want to leave when there is so much going for me here?"

"In my mind I have never wanted to leave. I get on with the manager, and I believe he understands how to get the best out of me as a player. Some of the signings made in the summer have also convinced me that the club is really going places and moving in the right direction."

While manager Paul Jewell said: "I am absolutely delighted Henri has decided to pledge his future here. I have sat down with him on numerous occasions over the past few weeks and discussed the situation over with him. He knows how much we think of him and how much a part of my plans he is and that is reflected in the offer we've made to him.

"I think when Henri Camara is settled, he's twice the player. He has come back to pre-season with fantastic hunger and he has looked so sharp in training. When he has a smile on his face, and he plays with a spring in his step and he gives his all, he is as dangerous as any striker in the division, I seriously rate him that highly. This is the news the players, staff and supporters of this club all wanted to hear."

What is your opinion? Talk about this in the mesageboard - click here.