Carra The Way To Go

They say behind every successful man, there's a supportive woman. Bring this analogy into football and you'll get 'behind every successful teams, there is a player who worked so hard for the team but never gets the credit.'

The name Jamie Carragher is seldom found on newspapers for an obvious reason that he's never controversial and doesn't enjoy being in the limelight. But to me, that's a quality that many of the football players in this age doesn't have.

But his name is always on the lips of Liverpool fans. The song, 'We dream of a team of Carragher' speaks a lot about the adoration of the Liverpool fans of this one club man. Here is a story of a player that went from a mediocre utility player to a world class centre back through hard work and determination.

We often say he's priceless not because nobody wants him but more to the fact that no matter how much money they throw at Liverpool for him, they know it'll end up a vain attempt.

A no-nonsense defender who puts his every single ounce of energy into matches week in week out, who can doubt the commitment of this Liverpudlian, who grew up supporting a club that's on the wrong side of Liverpool. If there is a player that will give his life to the club, it will no doubt be this man.

Reminisce of his performance against AC Milan in the '05 Champions League are still fresh on some people's mind. It might be the other players who got the Reds back into the game but the way Carragher defended Dudek's goal despite the cramps and ailment getting on him, he continued to toil on and became the ultimate unsung hero.

With John Terry looking mysteriously injury-prone in recent times, is it time for Jamie Carragher to step up and given the chance to shine for England just like he did for Liverpool. Like they say through difficult times, hero will rise, I believe it is time the England management team take a serious look on Carragher and give him the chance to be the man to replace Terry in the centre back role.

The Israel trip will call on England to put up a brave act and it will no doubt be a test of character for the Three Lions as their European qualifications hung in the balance. This is where I think Carragher will slot into the England squad perfectly and as a stalwart of the back line, the players will draw inspiration from Carragher, who is never afraid to get stuck in.

He doesn't oozes the class of Beckenbauer of even Rio Ferdinand. Neither does he have the pace of Alessandro Nesta. But when tough times is ahead, this is the type of player everyone will want in their team.

Often overlooked as nothing more than a utility player, he's been called up to the England squad time and again to be played out of position or even to say, treated unfairly. He's a cover for all the 3 positions across the back while also played as the holding midfielder in Sven's reign.

His treatment on the day England got knocked out of the World Cup by Portugal was particularly infuriating for many as he was substituted on just to take penalties. Incidentally, he scored but was asked to be retaken. His misery was compounded when Quim saved it.

I think it's about time they show respect to the man that gave his all even though he's often jeopardised. Even when he's overlooked, he never once complained like many footballers would and this is why I say that England has the asset that they never knew.

Time to show him the respect.


Just for laugh:

We dream of a team of Carragher. But matches will most likely end up 0-0.