Carrick admits he doesn’t understand the thinking behind international tournaments taking place in the middle of the season as Middlesbrough prepare to lose three key men next month.
Tonight’s game at Huddersfield is the last time Riley McGree and Sammy Silvera will be involved for Boro before they link up with the Australia squad on January 1 ahead of the Asian Cup.
And Boro are also set to lose Seny Dieng who is part of Senegal’s squad for the African Cup of Nations.
Losing McGree so soon after the midfielder returned from injury is a major blow for Boro, while Silvera is also a useful member of the squad and has started the last three games.
The duo could potentially miss as many as nine Middlesbrough games. They’ll definitely be absent for the Aston Villa FA Cup tie and both legs of the Carabao Cup semi-final against Chelsea and if Australia advance beyond their group, as expected, they’ll also miss the Championship game against Sunderland at the Riverside in early February.
“Obviously we knew there was the potential of it happening, it is what it is,” said Carrick, who must decide whether to start McGree at Huddersfield tonight (7.45pm) after two cameos from the bench in the last week.
“It’s not ideal to have a tournament in the middle of a season to be honest, I don’t really get why it is in the middle of a season but it is what it is. We knew it. It’s not like something has been thrown upon us, we’ll deal with it.”
Dieng is due to link up with the Senegal squad in the middle of next week after Boro’s games against Huddersfield and Coventry, but it’s not clear at this stage whether he’ll feature before then.
The keeper has missed the last three games with a thigh injury suffered in the win at Swansea and while the problem is only minor, if he is deemed fit to play, Carrick must decide whether to field Dieng or stick with Tom Glover, who will have the gloves in the absence of the No.1 next month.
“We’ll have to see, that’s team selection,” said Carrick.
“We’ll see how Seny is and we’ll make a call on that. I’m not going to jump the gun either way because things can happen but Tom has certainly done well when he’s played this week.”
Senegal are in a group with Cameroon, Guinea and Gambia. If they qualify for the knock-out stages, Dieng won’t return to Teesside until the end of January at the very earliest. The tournament runs until February 11.
Carrick had prepared for the possibility of losing two senior goalkeepers next month, but Glover was left out of the Australia squad and now has the opportunity of a prolonged run in the Boro team.
“You have to take the positives from every situation,” said Carrick.
“I’m sure there’s disappointment there (for Glover), but at the same point he’s played and had a really good week so there’s a lot to look forward to.”
Despite losing three players next month, Carrick is relishing the second half of the season. Although they started the campaign with a seven-game winless run and have had to contend with a string of injuries to key players, Boro are just three points off the Championship’s top six ahead of tonight’s game at Huddersfield and have the Chelsea double header to look forward to.
“It’s been alright,” said Carrick when asked for his assessment of the season so far.
“You put yourself in a position. We are where we are, in touch with the play-offs, everything to play for.
“We’ve had ups and downs and injuries, we’ve had things go our way and other things against us but we’re in a semi-final, we have the FA Cup and we have everything to play for in the league so I’m looking forward to what’s ahead.”
Boro are looking to bounce back tonight after their Boxing Day disappointment at Rotherham. Huddersfield are struggling at the wrong end of the table but will have been buoyed by an impressive 3-0 win over Blackburn last time out.
Carrick said: “They’re very good on the break and on transition Huddersfield, they’re dangerous with that with speed and penetration. They defend very well and have good individuals.
“Watching their games they look like a good team, I’ve been quite impressed watching them. We definitely won’t take it lightly.”
Be the first to comment