A defensive midfielder ought to be self-effacing and that trait is natural to Gareth Barry. Any player left out by Fabio Capello should accept his exclusion meekly if he prizes his England career. The Manchester City midfielder, however, seems genuine in his acceptance of the fact that Michael Carrick was picked in preference to him against Ukraine.

There is no sense that Barry might be smirking inside after missing Saturday's 1-0 loss. "When the team was named it wasn't a case of me dropping my head," Barry said. "You watch the game, learn from it, and try to work hard to get back in the team."

It is as well he is unflappable. A person might have been scorched by the raging hostility of the Aston Villa fans when he returned to play against his old club last week. There was a resentment that Barry had somehow slighted them by leaving for a club who were not members of the Champions League set.

Outsiders might have had difficulty understanding the anger when Barry went back to Villa Park in City's colours. The 28-year-old had devoted his whole adult career to them and the club then enjoyed a transfer of £12m . It is the type of "disloyalty" that would thrill many a chairman wrestling with his budget.

The outlandishly rich City are, of course, detested for that affluence. Such antagonism, all the same, is something that Barry and his new team-mates hope to draw upon. "People on the outside may enjoy seeing us fail," he said. "That can help make us stronger. There was a year or so when it happened with Chelsea and then it blows over. [City] expected it. The manager [Mark Hughes] has made the point to us. We've tried to use it to bring us together."

Whatever the strategy, it is working well enough for Barry's side, who are five points behind the leaders Chelsea with a game in hand. So far as England are concerned, these are days of achievement. Seventeen of Barry's 33 caps have come since Capello's first match in charge, against Switzerland in February 2008. This phase must be the peak of Barry's career. There is no risk of the midfielder ever being complacent but he does look integral to England's cause and, while Barry will not admit it, Carrick was most likely on the pitch in Dnipropetrovsk simply so the manager could study him. The Manchester United player certainly did not look superior to Barry in the international context.

"The manager names the team just before we travel to the stadium," the City midfielder said, "about two hours before the game. There was no warning, although you do bits and bobs in training where you might get a slight idea of who's playing. But you can never read too much with Mr Capello. He mixes things up so it's always difficult to tell. Some players would rather know the team, others aren't too worried. I'm [one] of the latter. I quite enjoy being on my toes and being told just before the game."

Still, Barry does know when a person is entitled to get anxious and appreciates the uneasiness his former Villa team-mate Emile Heskey is experiencing when lack of action with his club puts his England involvement in danger. "I know where his fears are probably coming from at the moment," said Barry. "The manager has made it clear that you have to be playing regularly and I am sure it is something Emile will need to think about." The City player, for his part, has entered a phase of his career in which insecurity looks almost unimaginable.