Denis Irwin, who announced his retirement from international football on Saturday, is pressing for a new two-year-deal which will keep him at Manchester United until the summer of 2002.
His current contract expires at the end of the season and Irwin, 35 next October, is hoping to go on longer than Steve Bruce and Peter Schmeichel, the two most senior citizens at Old Trafford in recent years.
"Frankly, I'm not aware of where the talks are at this point but I read in the papers that the chairman is in favour of offering me a new deal," he said.
That attempt to eke another couple of seasons from a singularly successful career at Old Trafford is almost certainly responsible, in part, for the decision which surprised many close to the team. Another reason is his determination to extract more family time from a heavy work schedule. He confirmed that he had sought the advice of Alex Ferguson before calling time on an international career which encompassed 56 appearances in the green. "I talked the matter over with him and basically, he said it was a decision which only I could make," he said.
"He didn't put pressure on me either way but after giving it a lot of thought, I eventually decided it was time to finish with international football. It was, of course, a hard decision and before making it, I talked with a couple of players who had been through the process before me.
"The way things are going, I will still be heavily involved with Manchester United but with no more international games, I should be able to spend more time with my wife and three children."
It was after the difficult trip to Turkey in November, that Irwin first mooted the idea of quitting but after discussing it with the Ireland manager, the indications were that he was prepared to soldier on. To that extent, McCarthy was disappointed when the full back informed him last week that he was leaving international football.
"I respect his decision, of course, but yes, I was disappointed when he decided to quit," he said. "In saying that, I'm not unaware of the other options I have at full back but I'm one of those managers who believe that you can never have too many good players in your squad.
"But this was something that wasn't done in a fit of pique. Denis will have weighed it all up in his mind and it may be that in retiring from international football, he is hoping to get more out of himself at club level in the coming years. I don't know."
In the pantheon of Ireland full backs who have played for Manchester United, Irwin is deserving of a special place. Over the years, this country has provided the Old Trafford club with some outstanding full backs, including Jackie Carey, Noel Cantwell, Tony Dunne and Shay Brennan
The testimony to Irwin's rounded skills is that he is not misplaced in that kind of company. Cool and resourceful under pressure, he successfully adjusted his game to take account of the changed job specifications for full backs in the modern era.
Moreover, he is regarded as one of the most precise strikers of the ball in the Premiership, an asset which has established him as one of the most successful penalty takers in recent years.
In his 10-year Ireland career, he scored some important goals, among them the one which earned a 1-1 draw in the first leg the World Cup play off against Belgium and again, in the 2-0 win in the home leg of the Euro 2000 game against Croatia.
