DESPITE his desire to go into management in the future, Jonny Howson is the first to admit that at this stage he's not doing all that much preparation for potential life in the dugout.

The reason? He's not yet ready to call time on his playing career, and while that remains the case the here and now rather than the future is all that's on his mind.

Middlesbrough's captain's current deal expires in the summer and while he's not played anywhere near as he'd like so far this season because of injury, he's still shown his importance when he has been on the pitch. He was excellent in the win over Millwall at the Riverside earlier this month and sorely missed as Boro crumbled in the Boxing Day draw with Sheffield Wednesday.

He missed that game with a niggle and it's not clear whether he'll be back for tonight's game against Burnley.

Howson will be 37 in May and, with that in mind, has an idea of his future hopes and plans when he does hang up his boots. He fancies management and has started his coaching badges, but other than picking the brains of coaches and bosses, doesn't want to get too distracted by what the future might look like while he's still playing.

"It's probably something I need to adapt to and ultimately accept where I am," he said.

"I have started doing my badges and when I do speak to past managers or even players who have gone into coaching, I will sometimes pick the brains regards to their thought process and how they've gone into it. So it's little bits like that.

"But I probably need to do more, but if I'm being honest I find that difficult because throughout my career I've always put my full focus into what I'm doing, which is preparing for games and playing football.

"That's how I am as a personality, whatever I'm doing I want to do to the best of my ability. So it's sometimes difficult to have a real focus on other things."

Which suggests Howson is not yet thinking of retirement?

"No, not just yet," he replied.

"My focus has just been on Christmas with the kids and playing football at this moment in time."

He does, however, have an idea of how he'd like the future beyond retirement to look.

"As we sit here now, and things can change, I would like to give managing a go. But it all depends on opportunities," he says.

"It's how you get there. I would like to learn about the coaching and managing before going straight in, but football is a funny business.

"I've spoken to previous managers and there's certainly one I can remember who said it was offered out of the blue and he fell into it like that. It's hard to plan your ideal route.

"I would like to give it a go at some stage but it's completely different to playing. It's about managing players and I need to learn how to do that and, let's be honest, make mistakes. It's a cut-throat business. But I also understand if you get offered a certain role sometimes you have to take it because it might never happen again.

"I'll cross that bridge when I come to it."

RECOMMENDED READING:

• Middlesbrough hold Sheffield Wednesday inquest as Carrick tries to strike key balance

• It can't go on like this for Carrick's Middlesbrough - they need to start delivering

In the dressing room, Howson leads by example rather than being a shouter. That's always been the case - and it's why early in his career he perhaps never saw himself as being captain material.

"I've probably learnt leadership more," he said.

"I've probably always done things right. Probably from a younger age, and it was different back then because when I was coming through leaders were shouters. So back then you'd have said no because I'm not a shouter or loud personality.

"So looking back I never thought I was a leader. Yeah, I did things right and to the best of my ability, but now you get more leaders like this in football that aren't going to rant and rave and shout. There are probably less of them lads around now and it's more leading by example, doing things right and taking lads with you like that."

And it's the same with managers.

"Yeah, I do think that is the case. Like anything in life, things change over time and it has gone a bit more that way," he said.

"But I still believe there is a time and a place for it. There are times you do need that kick up the backside, wake up call, whatever it is. I think there's a place for it in the game but for whatever reason there are less of them in the game.

"My dad and granddad used to joke with me about this, but I never wanted to be one of those players who turned around and said 'it wasn't like this in my day'.

"There's no right or wrong. There will still be managers who come through and go with that approach and they'll still be successful if they can get the right players to buy into it. That's what it's about, getting players to buy into what you want to do and you'll choose what you see fit."

Howson has played for plenty of managers and in plenty of different teams during his time at Boro. So how does this one compare?

"It's difficult that," he says.

"I've always found, not just teams I've been in here but previous teams, it's always difficult to compare because the league changes and type of football changes.

"So there's a different style of football, different changes, a different way of playing. Now, even in this league, the majority of teams will try to play out and start from the back, but if you go back to when I first came you didn't have half as many. Teams change, players change, so I find it hard to compare."