"Football is my life, but I'm not going to be playing at 40 - and I will look for another challenge within in the game. When my body tells me I can't sustain playing at the highest level any more, I know it will be time for me to call it a day.
"I want to finish playing at the top. I have no intention of playing in the lower leagues to sustain my playing career. I have done my coaching courses and would like to stay in the game in some capacity. I think there are numerous opportunities that will allow me to stay in the game, be it in coaching, the media or training in some capacity.
"I am told that you can inadvertently fall into management - like Mark Hughes and then you get bitten by the bug."
He goes on to explain the reason he has been able to play at the top for so long:
"I've been lucky that ever since my career began I have had proper periods of rest. Playing for Wales we never qualified for major championships, which I deeply regret, but it has helped me.
"For 18 years, I've consistently had six or seven-week rests during the summer. And the decision to retire from international football in 2007 was made to enable me to sustain my playing career at Manchester United."