Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard has revealed that he could have played through the pain barrier for England at the World Cup.
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The 22-year-old suffered a recurrence of an old injury in Liverpool's final Premiership game of the season and felt immediate surgery was the only way to cure a long-standing problem.
Gerrard told the News of the World: "I could have definitely decided to have surgery after the World Cup.
"I could still have gone and played but I wasn't confident that I could play in the three games in such a short space of time.
"I wasn't confident I could do the job I wanted to do."
Gerrard has at times been limited to just one club appearance a week during Liverpool's fixture-laden campaigns of recent seasons and felt similar availability in Japan would not be fair to England.
The player therefore decided to sacrifice himself to concentrate on next season.
He added: "I had to think about the fact we were already carrying injuries.
"David Beckham and Kieron Dyer were not fully fit and I knew it would be a disaster if I had gone and broken down.
"I also knew that other players, who could have done a better job because they were fitter, would miss out.
"I know I could have been very selfish - and I tell you, I wanted to go so badly - but I had to think about Liverpool and England.
"I had to be honest, I knew it would have been the wrong decision."
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