FORMER Rovers midfielder Jason McAteer got off to a losing start to his Sunderland career at Middlesbrough last night.

After weeks of speculation he finally made the move from Ewood Park to the Stadium of Light at the end of last week and he has insisted that he never fell out with Graeme Souness to spark his departure from Ewood Park.

"We had our differences of opinion, but we did get on," said the 30-year-old Republic of Ireland international. "It was just that football is a game of opinions.

"He didn't fancy me and one thing led to another and I left. I spoke to Peter Reid and it was absolutely fantastic - like a breath of fresh air.

"At Blackburn some people thought I should have been playing in the team, he thought I shouldn't. It was unfortunate that he picked the team!

"I seemed to be getting standing ovations from the crowd when I was substituted and then I wouldn't play the next game, and that was disappointing.

"It's probably a question you'd have to ask Graeme, why he didn't pick me. I don't actually know.

"We didn't actually sit down and he told me why. I look back at last season and I probably played 30-odd games, so it wasn't such a disappointing season.

"It was disappointing the fact that I missed out on the run-in when we got promoted. Although I played those 30 games, I didn't feel part of the promotion, and that was disappointing.

"Not seeing eye-to-eye with someone like Graeme Souness was disappointing, being told I could leave was disappointing, but things have got a habit of changing in football very quickly."

"This time it didn't. It dragged on and on. Even after I found out about Sunderland a month ago, it still dragged on."

But McAteer, who has also played for Bolton Wanderers and Liverpool, stressed that he will always have fond memories of his time at Blackburn.

He said: "I got on with all the players. It's a fantastic set up and a great club - the backroom staff, all the secretaries, right down to the chef and the driver - it's fantastic.

"I got on with most of the staff, so it's obviously disappointing, but it's that old cliche, I had to do what was best for Jason McAteer, and staying around as a squad member at Blackburn wasn't doing me any good."

McAteer is delighted to have resurrected his career after a miserable five months at Ewood Park where he was not really in the first team picture, and now he is looking to play himself back into the form which has given him a genuine chance of going to the World Cup Finals next summer.

"My ambition is to win things and to get back playing all the time," he said.

"I've got an international situation where we could be going to the World Cup next year.

"I very much want to be in the first XI with Ireland rather than being in the squad, and I need to be playing, and that was one of the biggest factors in my decision to leave Blackburn and get playing first-team football."