EVERGREEN CARVALHO STILL HAS CLASS TO LEAD PORTUGAL

THERE is a little less hair on the head and less speed in the legs but the mind is as sharp as ever and Ricardo Carvalho is plotting a move on England, Wembley and the Euros. The 38-year-old former Chelsea defender is set to be the oldest outfield player in France next month. Six years have passed since he left Stamford Bridge for Real Madrid and it is almost a decade since his flashpoint with Wayne Rooney in a World Cup quarter-final in Germany. Rooney stamped on Carvalho and was sent off, England lost on penalties and the two nations have not met since. On Thursday, the two players could be side by side again, leading out the teams. Carvalho captained his country to a 3-0 win against Norway on Sunday in the absence of Cristiano Ronaldo, who will not play at Wembley. It was his 84th cap and many consider him to be edging the contest to start alongside Pepe in the centre of Fernando Santos’s defence. It was

Santos who summoned Carvalho back from the international wilderness, three years after he walked out of the camp ahead of a Euro 2012 qualifier following a row with boss Paulo Bento, who accused him of ‘desertion’. Santos replaced Bento in 2014 after a disappointing World Cup and launched his revolution by recalling the veteran defender. Carvalho covers his fading pace with tactical intelligence and experience and has abandoned those rampaging runs which were a charming trademark of his six years at Chelsea. He and John Terry — younger than Carvalho by two and-a-half-years but preparing to watch another international tournament from his sofa — blended into a brilliant duo under Jose Mourinho. Carvalho called it a ‘natural’ understanding. The Portuguese is out of contract after three years at Monaco and there is no deal on the table. He will be without a club by the time Euro 2016 is finished but he is ready to carry on playing. He has enjoyed a career renaissance in the south of France, where he shunned the glitzy night-life of Monte Carlo for a family life by the Mediterranean. After injuries plagued the latter part of his time at Real Madrid, Carvalho has dedicated himself to his fitness. He doesn’t drink and refused to take a holiday last year in order to stay in Monaco for the summer and train every day at the club. Thursday’s match will bring back good memories. His last appearance at Wembley was the FA Community Shield against Manchester United in 2009. Carvalho scored in a 2-2 draw and Chelsea won on penalties.