Michael Carrick Interview

Michael Carrick’s not a man to scream and shout about his capabilities — he openly admits he’s not the sort of person to bust veins in his neck in a Roy Keane-like rant.

He’s United’s quiet assassin, the man who quietly and consistently punches killer passes through Premier League defences. Quite happy for a Rooney or a van Persie to take the plaudits, Carrick quietly goes about his business… and United bosses must be pleased that he does. Having just signed a deal to keep him at the club until June 2015, with an option to extend further, Michael, now 32, tells MUDSA why he wants to stay at Old Trafford until he retires… and beyond!

RR: How are you finding life under the new boss and coaches?

To be honest, it hasn’t actually been all that different. There’s the obvious difference in that it’s different personalities and Sir Alex has left. David Moyes is a different person, he’s got his own ways of doing things, but around the training ground not much has changed. Day-to-day it’s the same sort of routines and the same principles. People like Phil Neville have come in, and they obviously know the club, they’ve been here
before, and Giggsy is on the coaching staff so
there is still continuity within the club. And remember, a lot of the players have been at the
club for a long time, too.

RR: Congratulations on the contract extension, Michael. It’s rare for United to offer more than a one-year extension for a player to go on into their mid-30s. That must be a compliment…

Yes, it was a natural thing. It didn’t take much agreeing to, as obviously they want me to stay and I wanted to stay. The deal is another year after this season and then the option of another year after that. There was no reason to move anywhere.

RR: You mentioned Giggsy earlier. If your own body holds out, do you want to carry on like he has? Can you see yourself playing on?

I don’t think that you can plan like that. I mean, if you had asked Ryan five, six years ago if he’d still be playing on, he probably wouldn’t have seen himself doing so. I think you’ve just got to take things year by year and Ryan is incredible really. He’s got things going for him in terms of his build, his balance and how light he is on his feet. He doesn’t put a lot of force through his joints and he hasn’t had any major injuries. He obviously looks after himself. Once you get to a certain age you just have to see how things are going.

RR: Do you have any plans to move into coaching?

I started doing the coaching badges two or three seasons ago, but the way that the year panned out I didn’t actually finish them as I was too busy playing. At some stage I would like to go back and finish those. It’s not right at the front of my mind, but it does give you an option to stay in the game after you’ve finished playing.

RR: We were just talking with Nicky Butt earlier, and we’ve talked about Giggsy. There does seem to be a vibe at the club to keep the players on in other capacities at the club. Can you see yourself doing that, and staying in Manchester?

Who knows? I mean I’ve been here a long time myself. This is my eighth year. I think it’s a great thing at the club. They’ve got people who have been so successful here – the likes of Giggys and Scholsey, Phil Nev, Butty – they’ve been here for so long and have so much to give. They know the club inside out and people look up to them. It’s all about keeping the tradition of the club going on and keeping its identity.

RR: But you’re still a Geordie boy, no?

[Laughs] Yeah, I am. My family are all up there and my wife’s from up there. But we’re settled here, we’re happy here. The kids have grown up here and are five-and-a-half and three now. It would be nice to finish my career here and stay on at the club in some way.

RR: Do you think of yourself as a shouter, a motivator on the pitch?

No, I don’t actually. I’m quite laid back. I think that when you’re on the pitch, you have to talk, you have to communicate with the noise there is in the stadium and most of the time that’s shouting, but that’s not how I am normally.

RR: What about the coaches having to shout?

Yeah, you know, I’ve played under managers that have been quite calm, and quite composed. I’ve obviously played under others who have shouted and screamed. I think there’s a time for both styles and if you’re a manager, that’s when you have to gauge how to do things. There were none better than that over the years than Sir Alex. He had the knack of knowing when to let loose and let you have it, and then other times he’d be really calm when you were expecting him to go mad. It’s similar with the gaffer now, to be honest. He’s calm most of the time and then, when he sees something he’s not happy with, then he’ll let you know.

RR: Remember the two wonderful goals you scored against Roma in 2007? As a lad you started as a striker, didn’t you? Why don’t you shoot more often?

Well, it’s just the positions you get into really. The position I play within the team means that I don’t get in and around the box that often, apart from maybe corners and fee-kicks.

RR: What about in training…do you ever shoot from distance?

You train how you play, basically. It’s not something that I’m too worried about if I’m honest.

RR: Who was your favourite player when you were growing up, and who’s your favourite player now?

I always looked up to Peter Beardsley and Paul Gascoigne when I was growing up, because they were from the North East and were playing at the top level. Nowadays, you’ve got so many good players in our dressing room, you couldn’t pick anyone out. Obviously Scholsey was just a genius with what he could do, too.

RR: You’ve always been known for your passing, but recently is seems like it has got even better. Do you think it has?

Thanks. Maybe my long-distance passing has. I think you just get better as you get older and I try to improve all of the time.

RR: United’s win ratio with you playing is around 70%, whereas without you it’s 60%…

Well, I’m not one to look at the stats, to be honest. You can read a lot into stats and pick out different things, but I do wish it was a bit more than 70% when I was in [laughs]. I wish it was 100%, but you can’t have everything.

RR: United have nine games in December, so how does it affect you on and off the pitch when games come thick and fast like that?

Do you know, it feels like we’ve had that all season, a game every three of four days. It’s what we’re used to really. We do most of our training pre-season to get ready for the games, then training during the season it’s a case of recovering and preparing for the next one. Yes, it can be quite tough, mentally more than physically to keep going and setting the standards and hitting them in every game. But if you want to be winning trophies and be fighting at the top of the league, you’re going to playing a lot of games. It’s what we expect here.

RR: Moving on to England, is playing in the World Cup the pinnacle, something you dream of growing up even more so than European competitions?

It’s different. Playing in Europe is something that you strive for every single season, but the World Cup only comes around every four years. It’s a totally different feel. It’s your country and when the World Cup comes around the whole place changes. But playing in the Champions League final is pretty hard to top.

RR: The England players always take a lot of stick from the fans and the press, but they always seem to want to play on…

Yes, but to play in a World Cup, especially in Brazil this year, is special.

RR: What do you think England’s chances are?

Well, it’s going to be tough. There are so many good teams. We could have a good run and a bit of luck and who knows? But it will be tough. Once you get through the group it’s game by game after that. We’ve seen how well it can go, but we’ve seen how badly it can go. It’s a case of trying to peak at the right time.

RR: Do you watch football much?

Do you know, I don’t really. I used to watch a lot when I was younger, but now I try to get away from it. Mentally, just to switch off, I’ll watch other sports. A lot of the lads will watch a lot of footy, but watching other sport relaxes me. I’ll watch anything, though – rugby, golf, Formula One.

RR: And finally, deep down, you’re a Newcastle fan. If you’re still injured when United play against them on December 7th and you’re watching on TV, would your loyalties be divided at all?

[Laughs] Not a chance. I look out for Newcastle and I suppose support them in a few ways. That’s just natural if you’re born there. But there’s no chance that I’ll be wanting them to get anything against United. When you’re growing up supporting a club as a kid you don’t expect to be playing for another team…you don’t even expect to be a footballer!