Reluctant football hero Carrick set to take centre-stage

Michael Carrick will get a chance to take centre-stage for England in Wednesday's friendly against Germany, but the Manchester United midfielder has no intention of hogging the spotlight.

With Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard ruled of England's trip to Berlin, Carrick is expected to feature in Fabio Capello's midfield engine room.

For once Carrick will be given the opportunity to stamp his mark on the England team without being overshadowed by the presence of superstars like Lampard and Gerrard.

The 27-year-old remains one of English football's most under-rated players despite his impressive achievements at Old Trafford.

His astute reading of the game and metronomic passing played a key role in United's Premier League and Champions League triumphs last season, but Carrick has little appetite for the relentless self-promotion of some of his club and international team-mates.

A quietly-spoken man with an unassuming nature, Carrick is content to stay far from the celebrity circuit and keeps such a low-profile that he is rarely bothered by fans when out in Manchester.

That is just the way he likes it and, while he would like nothing more than to star against Germany and win a regular place in Capello's team, he has no intention of blowing his own trumpet about his cultured game.

“It's hard for me to answer why I'm not a high-profile player,” he said. “I've tried to do what I'm good at. I enjoy what I'm doing. I play for the best club in the world, the best team in Europe at the moment. It's for other people to judge.

“As long as the manager, the club, the players and the supporters are happy, I'm happy. I try to go about my business in the right way. It's how people react, really. It's not for me to control.

“Since I've gone to United, I've improved a lot. Winning things is great. There have been some great achievements. But you want to keep improving and progressing all the time.

“I certainly think I'm a better player than I was the last time I played for England.”

Carrick, who has 14 international caps, hasn't played for England since they lost to Germany at Wembley in August 2007 due to a combination of injuries and Steve McClaren's determination to keep Lampard and Gerrard in the team.

He could be forgiven for feeling under pressure to impress Capello, but the former West Ham player has played in too many big games for United to treat the Berlin friendly as an international audition.

“I don't really look at it as my one chance. If you're thinking like that, it puts a lot of pressure on yourself,” he said.

“It's another game of football for me. To represent my country is massive enough for me. I'm going to try and do what I've been doing, what I know I'm good at.

“The players throughout the squad, we've got some terrific players, world-class players in midfield. But it's a challenge for me.

“Hopefully the competition for places will bring everybody's game on. Everyone is playing well in the domestic league. It's a nice problem for the manager to have.

“To play for your country is a massive honour. It's not a meaningless friendly. As I say, Germany versus England at any level is a huge game.

“We're taking an awful lot of fans across there and we're not taking it lightly. It's not a case of not being interested about being here. It means a lot.”