Michael Carrick will be one of the senior members of the squad when England play at the 2014 World Cup, as they are extremely close to sealing qualification to this major tournament. This World Cup will also be the final tournament for the likes of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard, which could make Carrick as the senior most midfielder amongst the ranks. Many expect the former Tottenham midfielder also to call upon his retirement after the end of this tournament, but he thinks otherwise. Even though he has not been one of the talked about players among the Golden generation, Carrick sees himself continuing for the national team after the World Cup.
Prior to the national team return under Roy Hodgson, Carrick made just one international appearance in the previous management of Fabio Capello. This led to many rumours that he would eventually retire in order to concentrate on his Manchester United career. Now back in the England fold, he is expected to utilise his years of experience to guide the team. Despite being one of the most successful English midfielders having lifted the Champions league amongst many other titles, Carrick has featured only 29 times for the England national team.
This is less than the appearances made by some of the young players in the team.
“I haven’t given any thought to the World Cup being my last major international tournament. You never know what’s around the corner. It’s the next big opportunity, a massive opportunity, but in terms of it being my last one, I wouldn’t say so, no. There’s no reason why I’d look to pack up anytime soon. For me personally, I don’t think last season was any different to the two or three years before that. I felt my form was good,” said Carrick ahead of the match with Moldova.