Aston Villa centre-back Richard Dunne has revealed he is considering his international future with the Republic of Ireland.

The 32-year-old Dubliner was part of the Republic’s Euro 2012 campaign in which they failed to qualify from their group for the knockout stages.

He admits he now has a hard decision to make in the next few weeks and has asked Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert for advice.

When asked if he had considered retiring, Dunne said: “Yes, it has crossed my mind a few times. It’s easy after a tournament, the way it has gone, to make a rash decision and say ‘that’s it’.

“But I just have to think about things. I was basically waiting to get back into training with Villa and then have a think, see how I feel.

“It’s a hard decision, because it (playing for Ireland) is something I love doing, and I had a chat with Paul Lambert about it and asked him about it.

“He said it has to be down to me because if I’m not happy with the decision and I regret it, then it’s no good. I’ve already spent four weeks thinking about it and still can’t decide.”