THOSE WHO feel faint at the sight of players stepping up to take penalties in shoot-outs that decide major finals, perhaps sensing a John Terry or Nicolas Anelka moment is imminent, might have thought John O'Shea would be grateful to the mystery man on the Manchester United bench who spared him the trauma of having to take a kick in Moscow last Wednesday night. Not so.

"I'll find out who he is," said the Waterford man yesterday. "I'm narrowing people down."

Back on international duty, having joined up late with the Ireland squad after the Champions League final, O'Shea reflected yesterday on events in Moscow, where, in the end, he was an unused substitute.

"I was very close to getting on the pitch with about a minute to go in extra-time," he said. "The manager actually shouted at me to get ready; he was going to bring me on for Wes (Brown). But someone had a word in his ear and he brought on Anderson instead. It all worked out well in the end, I suppose."

Would he have taken a penalty?

"Yeah. He (Alex Ferguson) told me I wouldn't be in the first five, but I'd be up after that if required. Anderson took the sixth, so maybe. I'd done quite well in training when we practised them - I know that's not the same thing, but I would have been confident enough to have taken one."

No mixed feelings about the night, though, O'Shea insisting his contribution to the team through the season made him feel part of its achievements.

"Playing your part in the Premier League-winning team and helping when needed in Europe was something I'm very proud of," he said.

"I suppose the label of "the utility man" goes against me," he added of a season that saw his first-team opportunities significantly reduced, Patrice Evra nailing down the left-back spot and Wes Brown establishing himself at right back in the absence of Gary Neville. Openings in the centre of defence and midfield were even more limited.

"I've said all along that it would be ideal if I got a settled position and stuck with it longer than two or three games, but unfortunately people keep getting injured - and who's the man to fill in? You just have to get on with it because the club has so many players."

While admitting he has given some thought to leaving United in search of regular first-team football, O'Shea says he is content to stay for now, not least because of the experience of earlier United players who sought pastures new.

"Yeah, definitely, I think about players like that - there's been some success, there've been some failures too, but every individual is different. I'll deal with that when I have to. Of course (leaving United) is crossing my mind a lot of the time, but then I think about where you would go when you leave a club like this, that's an even bigger question."

That he is still a part of United's first-team squad is, he feels, an achievement in itself. In 1999, his first season at United, the club flew the youth squad, of which he was a member, to the Champions League final in Barcelona.

"None of the players with us that day was involved in Moscow," he said. "That's what happens; the percentage of players who get through at United from the youth team and the reserves is so small - because of the way the transfer market is gone we're getting kids in from all over the world, and if we need to splash the cash we're able to do that too. So I do feel lucky."

He feels lucky, too, he says, to be working under Giovanni Trapattoni.

"Alex Ferguson spoke very highly of him, and now I've witnessed him at close hand I can see the similarities between them, especially their enthusiasm and desire. I saw his enthusiasm this morning at training when he was doing his sit-ups and press-ups. It's incredible - he might be nearly 70 but he doesn't look it.

"You see his passion in his team talks, the experience he has, he's not fazed by anything at all, he knows what's required for the team to qualify. You can see already he really believes in us.

"It's all about getting to South Africa now. It's a tough group, but it's a group we can qualify from. That's what we've got to believe, and with this manager we believe it's possible."