Carrick unconcerned about competition at Manchester United

These days Paul Pogba is the first name down on the teamsheet instead of Michael Carrick, but Manchester United’s elder statesman insists he is not threatened by the arrival of new blood.

Carrick has recently turned 35 and, with his contract coming to an end this summer, he was presumed a likely candidate for the chop under new United boss Jose Mourinho.

He was instead handed a fresh one-year contract extension – though has found playing time in midfield hard to come by with the arrival of £89m Pogba and an in-form Marouane Fellaini.

 (OLI SCARFF/AFP/Getty Images)

However, Carrick says he has never been one to cast envious glances at his teammates.

“People said to me, ‘Someone’s coming in in your position, will you be worried about that?’ For me that’s never, ever something I’ve worried about. I think you’ve got to embrace it,” said Carrick, who arrived at Old Trafford from Tottenham Hotspur back in 2006.

“As a player, you do what you can, you do what you’re good at. From the minute I walked into United, I’ve never changed my take on things. I’ve never taken my foot off the gas when I’m playing every week, I’ve never worked extra hard to get back in the team when I’m not. I just do what works for me.

“I think football’s dangerous these days because from week to week, people get so up and down about things.

“But it’s about the end game, what you’re trying to win, what you’re trying to achieve. That’s how I look at it.

“Whether you’re playing every week or you’re not playing every week, you’re part of the squad and you’ve all got to pull together.”