WORTHINGTON Cup hero Brad Friedel today delivered the message all Blackburn fans want to hear by revealing he wants to stay at Ewood for the rest of his career.

The 30-year-old shot-stopper inspired Rovers to a 2-1 victory over Spurs at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium on Sunday with a string of super saves.

And now he wants to pledge his long-term future to the club -- news that is sure to come as a massive boost to manager Graeme Souness.

"My contract expires at the end of next season and I'd like to spend the rest of my career at Rovers," said the big American.

"I'll be 31 at the end of this season and I'd like to secure my long-term future here.

"I can't explain how professionally the club is run.

"I've been to Galatasaray, the biggest club in Turkey, I've played at Liverpool, I was at Bronby for a spell, which is the biggest team in Denmark.

"But this one is run better than all those and I'm not just saying that because I'm here or anything, I'm saying it because it's true.

"When I first joined this club it was absolutely fantastic. I saw how they treated the players and it's the little things that people don't know about when you first sign for a club that impressed me.

"You're moving city, you're moving house, you're moving this, you're moving that and everything's done so you don't have to worry about a thing.

"And that allows you to just concentrate on your football."

Friedel was already a huge hero with Rovers fans long before his man-of-the-match heroics at the Millennium.

But his performance against Spurs has only served to strengthen that bond and the American believes the future is bright.

"I'd like to secure my long-term future here," he said.

"There's a lot to build on here. We have a lot of tremendous young players mixed in with experienced players."

Despite Sunday's joyous scenes, however, Rovers still find themselves in the midst of a relegation battle and must resdiscover their Premiership form in order to consolidate their top-flight status.

An in-form Friedel will, therefore, be crucial if they are to achieve that aim.

And if belief is anything to go by, then the United States number one believes that Graeme Souness' men are more than equipped to get themselves out of the mire -- starting with three points from Saturday's six-pointer at Bolton.

"We have the right mixture to get us out of the spot we're in and build for the future," said Friedel. "As long as we get some results, then we'll be fine."