Football
ESPN staff 10y

Gerrard undecided on England future

England captain Steven Gerrard has denied speculation he is to retire from international football, saying he needs more time to come to a final decision.

- Brewin: Time for captain Gerrard to jump ship

With the Three Lions having crashed out of the World Cup after just two games, following defeats to Italy and Uruguay, there have been calls from some for Gerrard, 34, to bring an end to his England career so the nation can start planning for the future.

The Liverpool player, however, says he will not be rushed into making a decision and first wants time to clear his head before giving an answer.

"There is no truth I'll be making any announcement on my England future in the next week, I need more time than that," he told a news conference.

"I'm still hurting and I'm still broken from the last couple of weeks. I need to get away before I make that decision."

Asked if he had a hunch what his decision would be, Gerrard said: "Not at the moment, I need time.

"I've agreed with the manager [Roy Hodgson] I'm going to speak to him in a few weeks' time.''

As well as being unsure of his own international future, Gerrard was unable to state what England's direction will be for the coming years.

With Euro 2016 next on the horizon, however, the midfielder does feel the Three Lions have the players at their disposal to impress in the competition.

"I don't know what the plans are going forward. I do agree with what the manager has said that the talent is in the group," he said.

"The talent is there. At the moment, it is very difficult for myself, the players, to find a lot of positives.

"When you look at the bigger picture, things can change very quickly in football."

England face Costa Rica on Tuesday in their final World Cup game before flying home.

Hodgson is expected to make a number of changes to his side, giving the younger players in his squad, such as Ross Barkley and Luke Shaw, the chance to impress from the start.

Information from the Press Association was used in this report

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