English football has a strange way of lauding its finest talents. Whether it be publicising their private holiday snaps or damning their undoubted talent, history is littered with a multitude of gifted individuals frequently lambasted by ‘experts’ and armchair pundits the nation over. For Michael Carrick, proud owner of a Champions League winning medal and 33 international caps, the story is no different. A plagiarised narrative. Criminally underrated, often undermined, Manchester United’s metronomic midfielder heads a long list of elites overlooked by the masses.

Its all in the mind

The question has to be, why is one of the game’s most decorated midfielders so consistently criticised? Well, the answer potentially has its roots in psychology rather than sporting ability. English football, to its overall detriment, has long derided subtlety and longed for bombast. Wayne Rooney, Paul Gascoigne, even Ross Barkley, perfectly fit England’s ideal model. Rambunctious, powerful, exuberant. Ferrari’s, exploding into breakneck speed in the blinking of an eye. The street footballer.

Carrick, however, bucks the trend dramatically. Calm, composed and effortlessly unflustered. A Bentley on cruise-control. Ask any adolescent which car they would prefer, however, and most would surely elect for the Italian stallion. Probably red. With a spoiler.

Carrick, though immensely gifted, remains unappreciated by the casual observer, the armchair fanatic. Former United centre-half Gary Pallister summed up the perplexing situation best in 2012; “He is one of the players that if things go wrong the fans berate and put all the blame on but he has been terrific.” Carrick’s poised, almost languid approach makes him an easy target, a stand-out victim of vitriol.

As Mesut Ozil will undoubtedly attest, when the going gets tough, the tough get hailed. Those without the engine to sprint for 90 minutes, without the skill-set to hammer home a barnstorming 30 yarder, meanwhile, are hung out to dry. Especially in an era where ‘grabbing the game by the scruff of its neck’ has become the go to demand with their team struggling. Carrick, like Ozil, are victims of their own refined repertoire.

England’s loss…

Last season, as United stumbled from toil to meltdown, Carrick lost his place in Roy Hodgson’s national selection. With only 31 caps to his name, 22 less than Gareth Barry, and rapidly approaching ‘veteran’ territory, a sustained return to the international fold appears unlikely despite his exceptional cameo against Italy last night. This suggests only a stop-gap solution. His age confirms it. At 33, the ship hasn’t quite sailed. But it’s waiting in the port. Its 13 years since his international bow. England have floundered, failed in four World Cups since. Carrick, unbelievably, only once made the stage in the Greatest Show on Earth. Against Ecuador. Too little, too late.

England’s 2014 capitulation, as disastrous as it was inevitable, suffered its first wounding blow against Tuesday’s opponents. Andrea Pirlo’s Italy. Dictating possession with his trademark composure, balance and effortless class, Cesare Prandelli’s under-strength Azzurri scraped past an exuberant, if naïve, England. Juventus’ hirsute playmaker, the epitome of sporting grace, rightly seized the plaudits. Deferential glances, however, soon paved way for jealousy.

‘Why can’t England produce a player like that?’, the nation cried. ‘A player with superb tactical understanding, inch-perfect distribution and undoubted international class’. Well, we did. We have. And, as the history books will show, he was cruelly and wrongly lambasted while his Italian counterpart remained the toast of the world game.

Carrick’s international exclusion is nothing new. Throughout Fabio Capello’s erratic reign, England often flitted between Gareth Barry and Scott Parker. A sign of the times; pragmatism over playmaking. Consequently, the Three Lions were bullied by the big dogs. With ‘Xaviesta’ characterising Spain’s ‘Golden Generation’, Germany 2.0 led by the multi-talented Bastien Schweinsteiger, England’s dearth of confident ball-players saw the nation fall into shadow; predictable and rigid.

A victim of Capello’s tactical inflexibility, Carrick failed to feature in South Africa. Meanwhile, in a far-from vintage Manchester United, he raised trophy after trophy. Still, however, the neutrals remained unconvinced. Though United’s number sixteen undoubtedly improved in the preceding years, even appearing on the shortlist of the 2013 PFA Player of the Year award, he failed to secure a regular international berth. Most will pin the blame upon his very shoulders. Refusing to warm the bench at Euro 2012, Carrick withdrew from the squad. Now, he is no ego-maniac, demanding love and adoration. But a bit of praise wouldn’t go amiss.

Generally unappreciated, his departure was understandable. Looking back, with hindsight on hand, how England could have benefited from Carrick’s expertise. Averaging a mere 39% possession in Poland and Ukraine, only Greece and Ireland, relative minnows on the international stage, enjoyed less. The nation missed a trick. Failed to spot a diamond in a pot of white gold.

The crucial component

Even at Old Trafford, Carrick remains oddly undervalued by many. Perhaps undermined by the legacies of Roy Keane and Bryan Robson, inspirational, riotous leader figures driving forward from the very same role. The statistics, however, tell their own tale. In a midfield dominated by overseas arrivals, restricted by similarity, Carrick offers the perfect foil for Louis Van Gaal’s creative band of brothers. Consistent in their inconsistency, United struggled for invention earlier in the campaign, despite the presence of Ander Herrera, Juan Mata, Angel Di Maria and Adnan Januzaj.

Bereft of ideas, seemingly shorn of confidence, they lacked the ability to dictate tempo, restricted to a one-dimensional, plodding possession tactic. Too many touches, too little urgency. Carrick, however, offered an ideal outlet. His composed distribution perfectly contrasts the Red Devils’ overly intricate build-up play. His ability to switch possession to wide areas, recycle the ball at will and, crucially, alleviate the pressure in nervy situations is vital. He has started 14 Premier League games this season. United have won ten of them. Their most comprehensive performances to date, the home hammering of Tottenham and exceptional victory at Anfield, was inspired by Carrick’s midfield majesty. Coincidence? No chance.

Typically, however, it is Carrick’s finest art that attracts the most vocal criticism. His remarkable pass accuracy, standing just short of 90 per cent, is indicative of a playmaker at the very top of his game. His distribution range, while vastly extensive, is often a cause of consternation however. Vilified for sideward balls, lambasted for lacking that final, killer pass, his apparently ‘safe’ possession ploy regularly frustrates. But therein lies the flaw in the argument.

Unlike Tom Cleverly, for example, passing the baton more often than not, Carrick’s distribution is intelligent, usually ingenious. With United gravitating centrally, their metronomic midfielder spreads the play wide, utilising the marauding exuberance of Luke Shaw, Ashley Young or Antonio Valencia. In contested midfield battlefields, his guile is crucial. Meanwhile, his unrivalled ability to float delicious passes in behind high defensive lines, to the particular benefit of Robin Van Persie, gives United an attacking dimension unseen since Paul Scholes’ heyday. Subtle, yes. Ineffective? A laughable indictment.

Furthermore, his experience and tactical nous noticeably calms United’s frequently erratic backline. With Chris Smalling, Phil Jones or Marcos Rojo caught out in high positions, Carrick innately plugs the gaps, corks potentially gaping holes in a porous defence. Plus, his excellent pressing and superb positioning results in frequent, often crucial interceptions. With United in transition, lacking leaders and pragmatism, Carrick is driving the Red Devils towards Europe.

Pirlo, Alonso…Carrick?

In truth, Carrick has very few superiors. That coveted quarterback role, increasingly glamourised in the possession-obsessed modern game, requires a special talent. The ability to dictate, distribute and destroy. Arguably, only Pirlo, Carrick and Xabi Alonso personify the esteemed position. Bayern Munich’s Mediterranean lynchpin, like his Lombardian equivalent, is adored, idolised by the footballing public. Augmented by their outstanding dead-ball delivery, their success on the international stage, they are worshipped as the finest deep-lying midfielders of their generation.

Mention Carrick in the same sentence at your peril. Perhaps it’s the image. Their cultivated, cultured appeal enhanced by faultless facial hair and dead ball prowess. Carrick, born and bred in modest surroundings, and a rare goalscorer to boot, falls under the radar. Adored by the elite, unappreciated by the masses, if the Geordie pass-master had spent his youth basking in the southern European sun, would he be revered rather than reviled? For that is the English enigma. The grass, after all, isn’t always greener.

Despite his return to the international fold, the doubters remain out in force. Scroll through Twitter, scour the forums, and you’ll find a consistent theme. Incredulous criticism, allegations of slowness, of predictability, of boring, boring Carrick. For every analyst, staunchly defending his belittled brilliance, you’ll find five calling for his head. He divides opinion, to say the least. But, after eight largely trophy-laden years at Old Trafford, a Player of the Year nomination, and a refusal to descend into decline, he deserves more. More respect, more esteem. They say you don’t know what you’re missing until it’s gone. And, with his 34th birthday on the horizon, we are about to find out. While Pirlo and Alonso ride into the sunset, the glint of silverware under their arms, the adulation of a baying crowd ringing in their ears, Carrick will swap his studs for slippers and settle into retirement, his career a success but his genius overlooked.

Written by Danny T Owen

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