The 31-year-old recently signed a one-year contract extension with the Premier League side.
He told Sky Sports News: “The manager spoke to me just prior to the end of the season and said that he wanted me to stay and saw that I had a big part to play next season, which is obviously why I signed the extra year option that I had in my original contract.
“I was delighted to hear that, for starters, and then obviously to agree to it. I’ve said many times, the only way to go from a club like this is down.”
“We do play more games than most teams,” he added. “We get to the latter stages in a lot of cup competitions so there’s a lot of games to go around.
“My first season was fantastic, I played an awful lot of games. Last year was a little bit quieter, everyone seemed to be fit and playing well.
“Obviously the goals that were being scored by everyone else didn’t allow you to get that look-in. But I still had some great times and hopefully this year is going to be the same.”
