MANCHESTER UNITED MIDFIELDER Michael Carrick has revealed he brought his international career to a premature end because tournament duty with England was making him “depressed.”
Despite winning 18 trophies in 12 years at United, including five Premier League titles and the Champions League in 2008, Carrick was often overlooked at international level.
He won 34 caps in a 14-year international career between 2001 and 2015, but only played one game at a major tournament and said his experience at the South Africa World Cup in 2010 left a lasting negative effect.
“I was finding it hard going away with England. I didn’t mind going away with United on pre-season for the three weeks or whatever but going away with England it was almost depressing in a way, it made me really down,” Carrick told the BBC’s Premier League Show.
“It came to a point after South Africa I thought I can’t do that again. People will say ‘pull yourself together and be grateful for it’.
I understood the privileged position I was in, but I just found it so hard and I couldn’t deal with it anymore. I was depressed at times, I told the FA please don’t pick me.”
Jose Mourinho revealed in January that he expected Carrick to call time on his career at the end of the season, and the 36-year-old confirmed his intention to retire last month.
He has indicated that he is likely to join the coaching staff at Old Trafford.
Additional reporting by Sinéad Farrell.
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Fingers have never been more crossed for RG.
He’s had more than enough bad luck. Time for him to show what he can do. #SUAF
@Criiochúr Daniel Daithí O’Chathail: Agreed but starting his return on an artificial pitch mightn’t be the smartest move.
@TL55: 100%.
Be mad to test him out there.
Leave it till thomand or any other turf pitch.
That 4g is hard on knees.
@Paddy Waggon: agree… the last 20/25 mins in Limerick as a reintroduction…. A sixth spot for Munster in the URC prior to plays is exactly where they want to be…
Sixth secures HC for next year… but equally important if we finish fifth in the URC we will have to travel to play the team who finished second … guess who another trip to SA for to face the Stormers…. We already have 2 remaining fixtures in SA in the URC run of games and we have the game in the HC (Sharks) … so sixth is our best position …. I’d be more than happy with that and lifting a trophy with Synman. How bad
@Denis O Sullivan: oh by the way sixth in the URC would mean we would have to travel North to play Ulster as the table stands today. Better than going to SA to face Stormers or worse again if the Bulls finish third….
Good luck RG.
No one deserves the bad luck you’ve had.
If the Insta clips are to be believed Ahearn is training with the team, same for Okeke, is anyone signed up for the ‘extra content’ thing? looks to be cameras with them all the time now.