Hackney’s place at this summer’s Under-21 Euros in Slovakia was confirmed when Lee Carsley announced his squad last Friday, with the Redcar-born 22-year-old expected to feature in England’s starting line-up for their opening game against Czechia on Thursday.
However, while Hackney was delighted to receive the phone call confirming his selection last week, he was still reeling from events the previous day which had seen Carrick dismissed as Boro boss.
The former England midfielder has played an integral role in Hackney’s development, handing him a regular spot at the heart of the Middlesbrough midfield and also working closely with him on the training pitches at Rockliffe Park.
“I found out Thursday I was in the squad, and told my mum and dad and, yeah, I was buzzing,” said Hackney. “But also, I was gutted about Michael Carrick, to be honest. He’s done loads for me.
“He put his trust in me to play the majority of games and helped me so much with everything really. I can’t thank him enough for that.”
While Hackney first broke into Boro’s senior ranks during Leo Percovich’s caretaker spell in charge, it was Carrick’s appointment as head coach that saw the academy product really blossom.
Carrick regularly spoke glowingly of Hackney’s ability and attitude, and provided valuable support when Hackney suffered a series of injury issues two seasons ago.
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The pair have been in contact since Carrick’s departure was confirmed, with the former Boro boss wishing Hackney all the best for this summer’s Euros.
“I text him straight away wishing him all the best in the future, and he replied wishing me good luck for going away with England,” said the centre-midfielder. “It was nice.
“It’s probably the first manager that I’ve lost and I just wanted to thank him for everything. But now a new guy will come in, whoever that may be, and as a squad we’ll go from there.”
Boro’s recruitment process will continue this week, with Steve Gibson set to hone in on his first-choice candidate after conducting a series of formal interviews.
Hackney will be an interested observer from afar as he focuses on trying to help England defend the Under-21s title they won two years ago when a goal from Curtis Jones secured a 1-0 win in the final against Spain.
Boro’s academy has a proud record of producing future internationals at a host of different levels, and Hackney has been speaking to Dael Fry about his experience of helping England win the Under-20s World Cup in 2017 as part of a team that also featured Dominic Solanke, Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Fikayo Tomori and Ezri Konsa.
“At Boro, Dael still speaks a lot about his time with England,” said Hackney. “He says how much he enjoyed the whole experience of it all, all the competitions and some of the players he played with have gone on to do some unbelievable stuff. He has just said how it’s a great experience and to savour it.”
Most of England’s current Under-21 squad play in the Premier League, but Hackney does not feel out of place as a Championship player.
“When I first came in, I didn’t know what to expect,” he said. “But once the first session was out of the way, you get into it. It’s really good. We’re all good mates and really get on with each other.
“My main goal at this tournament is just to play really. Grasp the experience, take it all in and do as well as we can. Then, obviously, the main objective is to win it. That’d be unbelievable. Obviously, there’s a long way to go, but if we could do that then it’d be special.”
