Jamie Carragher says he would be gutted if he couldn't play for Liverpool next season and that's why he wanted to undergo surgery on his troublesome knee problem at the end of the domestic season rather than delay it by going to the World Cup finals with England.
It would be fair to say that Carragher had one foot on the plane for the World Cup finals but made the decision to have his knee injury operated on as soon as possible and that closed the door on Japan and Korea.
"Playing for England is a bonus but playing for Liverpool is what I want to do and I know not playing for Liverpool would hurt me more than not playing for England. That is the main thing for me," Carragher told the official LFC website.
"It is disappointing to be missing out on the World Cup but as I've said it would be more disappointing to break down with a serious knee injury and be out of action for a lengthy spell."