Jamie Carragher

James Lee Duncan Carragher ( ; born 28 January 1978) is an English football analyst and former player who played as a defender for Premier League club Liverpool during a career which spanned 17 years. A one-club man, he was Liverpool's vice-captain for ten years, and is the club's second-longest serving player, making his 737th appearance for Liverpool on 19 May 2013. Carragher also holds the record for the most appearances in European competition for Liverpool with 149.

Carragher started his career at the Liverpool Academy, making his professional debut in the 1996–97 season, and becoming a first-team starter the following season. Having initially played as a full-back, the arrival of manager Rafael Benítez in 2004 saw Carragher move to become a centre-back, where he found his best form. His honours with Liverpool total two FA Cups, three Football League Cups, two FA Charity/Community Shields, one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup and two UEFA Super Cups.

Internationally, Carragher held the national record for most caps at under-21 level and earned his senior debut in 1999. He represented England at UEFA Euro 2004 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup, before announcing his retirement from international football in 2007. He did, however, temporarily come out of retirement in order to represent England at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, before retiring again with 38 senior England caps.

Following his retirement in 2013, Carragher joined Sky Sports as a commentator and pundit. In July 2020, CBS Sports announced Carragher would join their Champions League studio broadcast team.

Early life

James Lee Duncan Carragher was born in Bootle on 28 January 1978. His maternal grandfather was Maltese, and his paternal grandfather was Irish. He has described his mother as a "very holy" Catholic woman who had previously suffered miscarriages but refused to consider an abortion whilst pregnant with Carragher, despite doctors expecting him to be born with spina bifida. He was born with gastroschisis, requiring him to be immediately taken to Alder Hey Children's Hospital.

Despite the popular misconception that he grew up in poverty, Carragher clarified in his autobiography that he "grew up in a nice house in a nice area ndhad a great childhood". He attended St James Catholic Primary School in Bootle. He supported Everton while growing up like his father, who gave him his two middle names "Lee" and "Duncan" in honour of the team's manager Gordon Lee and its player Duncan McKenzie; on the day of Carragher's birth, Lee fired McKenzie from the team. However, despite initially supporting Everton as a young boy, he later became a dedicated supporter of Liverpool. His support for the club grew when he joined Liverpool's youth academy and eventually spending his entire professional career at the club.

Club career

Beginnings and Cup treble (1988–2004)

Carragher attended the FA's School of Excellence in Lilleshall as a youth. He joined Liverpool, Everton's Merseyside rivals, in 1988; he regularly attended Liverpool's School of Excellence wearing a Graeme Sharp Everton kit. He spent a year at the Everton School of Excellence at the age of 11, but returned to Liverpool due to the club's superior coaching set-up under Steve Heighway. He failed to impress in his first appearances to the Liverpool A and B teams due to his then-small stature, but after being moved from up front to a midfield role he was able to establish himself in the reserve team. He played his first game for the reserves in the 1994–95 season, and was named man of the match against Blackburn Rovers at Haig Avenue. He helped Liverpool to win the 1996 FA Youth Cup with a 4–1 aggregate victory over a West Ham United side that included Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard.

Carragher was tried out in defence for the first time during the tournament, and later admitted that Liverpool were not the most technically gifted side in the competition, but instead relied on team spirit and the outstanding talents of Michael Owen.

He made his first-team debut for the "Reds" under Roy Evans in a League Cup quarter-final against Middlesbrough at the Riverside Stadium on 8 January 1997, coming on as a substitute for Rob Jones 75 minutes into a 2–1 defeat. Three days later, he made his Premier League debut as a substitute at Anfield, playing the entire second half of a 0–0 draw with West Ham United. On 18 January, he was scheduled to play as a centre-half against Aston Villa, only to be replaced in the starting line-up by Bjørn Tore Kvarme; however, Patrik Berger was taken ill, and Carragher was his last-minute replacement in central midfield. He played alongside Jamie Redknapp and scored his first goal with a header in front of the Kop in a 3–0 win. Despite this auspicious start, it proved to be his last contribution to the 1996–97 campaign.

Carragher broke into the first team in the 1997–98 season as Liverpool struggled to keep pace with Arsenal and Manchester United despite having talented players such as Owen, Redknapp, Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman and Paul Ince. Throughout his early playing career, he was essentially used as a utility player that spent time as a centre-half, full-back and defensive midfielder in a squad that was often negatively labelled the " Spice Boys".

Carragher learned to shun the spotlight and focus on football instead as new manager Gérard Houllier used him consistently in a new continental side focused on discipline. In his autobiography, ''Carra'', Carragher admitted that "I always felt close to Gérard", and was full of praise for the French manager during the early part of his reign. He went on to make 44 appearances in the 1998–99 season, and was named as the club's Player of the Year.

Carragher was restricted to the right-back position after scoring two own goals in a 3–2 home defeat to Manchester United early in the 1999–2000 season. Houllier never again played him at centre-back, as Sami Hyypiä and Stéphane Henchoz formed a solid partnership.

The 2000–01 season saw Carragher switch to the left-back position and win his first senior honours, as Liverpool went on to win the FA Cup, League Cup, UEFA Cup, Community Shield and Super Cup in the space of just a few months.

During a January 2002 FA Cup tie against Arsenal, Carragher threw a coin back into the stands that had been tossed at him and received a red card. He escaped an FA misconduct charge after publicly apologising, but he did receive a formal police warning about the incident.

From 2002 to 2004, Carragher sufferered two serious injuries, missing the 2002 FIFA World Cup for an operation on his knee, and later receiving a broken leg after a tackle by Blackburn Rovers' Lucas Neill at Ewood Park in September 2003. During this period, his place in the team was also threatened by signings of Steve Finnan and John Arne Riise. Despite this, he was able to win a second League Cup in 2003 with Liverpool, and shortly afterwards was named the club's vice-captain.

Champions League and FA Cup success (2004–2007)

The 2004–05 season proved to be a career-defining one for Carragher. New manager Rafael Benítez moved him to centre-half, where he made 56 appearances all season alongside Sami Hyypiä. Carragher developed a reputation as a strong and positionally astute defender and remained in the centre-half position for the rest of his career. Carragher worked closely with Benítez’s assistant Pako Ayestarán, whom he later described as the best fitness coach of his career.

This season saw Carragher prove central to Liverpool's triumph in the UEFA Champions League, in particular when he made two vital last-ditch intercepts in the final in extra-time whilst suffering from cramp. Carragher was awarded the Liverpool Player of the Year Award at the end of the campaign, and went on to captain the team to their UEFA Super Cup victory over CSKA Moscow. He was nominated for football's most prestigious individual accolade, the Ballon d'Or, in 2005.

In May 2006, Carragher played in the FA Cup Final against West Ham United, his tenth final in as many years of club football. Despite scoring an own goal in the 21st minute, Liverpool went on to win the final 3–1 on penalties after the match finished 3–3 after extra-time, giving Carragher his second FA Cup win. He appeared in the FA Community Shield win two months later.

On 9 December 2006, Carragher scored his first league goal since January 1999, in a match against Fulham at Anfield. Fellow defender Daniel Agger flicked the ball on from a corner, and Carragher slid the ball under Fulham keeper Jan Laštůvka at the far post. The goal was only his fourth in his Liverpool career.

In Liverpool's Champions League semi-final second leg against Chelsea on 1 May 2007, Carragher set a new record for the most appearances in European competition for the club—his 90th European match—taking him past Ian Callaghan's 89 matches between 1964 and 1978.

Carragher was voted as Liverpool's Player of the Year for a third time after the 2006–07 season by the fans, and immediately agreed a contract extension until 2011. That season also saw Carragher announce his international retirement, citing frustration with a lack of appearances under Steve McClaren.

Later Liverpool career (2007–2013)

The 2007–08 season saw Carragher reach his 500th appearance for Liverpool, for which he was made captain. On 18 May 2009, in the match against West Bromwich Albion, Carragher was involved in an on-field clash with fellow defender Álvaro Arbeloa, and the two had to be separated by teammates Xabi Alonso and Daniel Agger. Manager Rafael Benítez refused to comment on the matter, while Carragher later explained, "We want to keep a clean sheet and we want Pepe to have a chance of the Golden Glove for the fourth season running."

The following season saw many questioning his performances and whether he should remain in the starting line-up, although a solid performance against Manchester United on 25 October 2009 silenced his critics. Four days later, he was sent off in a game against Fulham, which was his first red card in more than seven years.

On 4 September 2010, a mixture of Liverpool players past and present played an Everton XI in Carragher's charity fund-raising testimonial match. All proceeds from the game at Anfield went to local charities through Carragher's 23 Foundation. He scored a goal for each side as his Liverpool team beat the visitors 4–1, first by scoring from the spot for the Reds, then converting a second-half penalty own goal for the club he had supported as a boy.

On 24 October 2010, Carragher scored his seventh own goal in the Premier League. Weeks later, he dislocated his shoulder in a 2–1 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur. He was out for around three months with the injury as it required surgery. He returned on 6 February against Chelsea.

On 24 February 2011, Carragher made his 137th European appearance in a match against Sparta Prague at Anfield, setting a new British record. On 17 April 2011, during a match against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, both Carragher and Jon Flanagan tried to head away the same ball, resulting in their heads colliding and Carragher being knocked out. After six minutes of treatment, Carragher was stretchered off and replaced by Sotirios Kyrgiakos. Carragher recovered in time to make his 666th appearance for Liverpool days later, in a 5–2 victory against Fulham. This appearance put Carragher second in the list of Liverpool's all-time appearance makers, behind Ian Callaghan with 857 games. In 2012, Carragher won a third League Cup with Liverpool.

In the first game of the 2012–13 season, and the start of Brendan Rodgers' term as Liverpool manager, Carragher made his 700th appearance for Liverpool in a 1–0 victory in the Europa League third-round qualifying tie against FC Gomel. Carragher often captained the side during the Europa League, and after a period of time only making league appearances as a substitute, he began to again earn a string of starting places.

Retirement

On 7 February 2013, Carragher announced that he would retire at the end of the season, stating "It has been a privilege and honour to represent this great club for as long as I have and I am immensely proud to have done so since I was 9."

On 9 March 2013, he played his 500th league game for Liverpool, in a 3–2 win over Tottenham Hotspur. On 19 May 2013, Carragher played his 737th and final game for Liverpool in a 1–0 win over Queens Park Rangers. Before the match, he was given a guard of honour and was presented with a special trophy commemorating his career by Steven Gerrard

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