So, on the day Trevor Sinclair flew out with the full England squad for a get-together in Dubai after being named on standby, Michael faces the disappointment he feared about playing for the U21 side in Switzerland this summer.
Says club doctor Ges Steinbergs:
"Michael saw a specialist and is out of the U21s; he had an injection under ultrasound and he has got to have complete rest for seven days, then he can do light work for seven to 10 days in the swimming pool.
"But with these games coming up, and the first on a Friday, he is not going to be fit.
"With his recent hernia operation as well and coming back from that speedily, all of these things begin to take their toll, and I think this is probably the best thing all round in the sense of allowing things to settle down both from a groin point of view and a hernia point of view."
There is no question that Michael could have gone with the U21s after what the scan showed, and Ges adds:
"We have a good relationship with England; recently we sent Jermain to the U21s and they only played him in half a game which suited Jermain and us.
"We always try to facilitate them, and obviously Michael is very disappointed, but it is not to be.
"He is normally injury free but the hernia operation had been going on some while prior to the operation and in the end he had to give in after the Southampton game.
"It is a lot to ask of him to come back from that and ask him to perform to the highest level, and now to get a groin problem on top of that added to it.
"The operation was fine, but it's no bad thing that he will be getting a bit more rest for the hernia to become even stronger.
"But the adductor, the groin problem, has gone on a few weeks and finally needed an injection to calm it down.
"When he returns on July 4th he will have already fully recovered, so there are no anxieties about that."