Everything about Jamie Carragher totally explained
James 'Jamie' Lee Duncan Carragher (born
28 January 1978 in
Bootle,
Merseyside) is a central defender/right-back playing his club football at
Liverpool where he's the current vice-
captain.
One of the longest-serving players of the club, Carragher has made his 500th appearance for Liverpool on
15 January 2008 in all competitions, in the home FA cup fixture against
Luton Town. He was made captain for this match. He is now settled in the heart of the defence under
Rafael Benitez though previous manager
Gérard Houllier preferred to use him as a full-back.
Club career
As a youth, Carragher attended the former FA school of excellence in Lilleshall and was a member of Liverpool's
FA Youth Cup winning team in 1996 — a side that also contained his good friend
Michael Owen.
He signed a professional contract in October 1996 and then made his first team début three months later in the second leg of the
Coca Cola Cup semi-final against
Middlesbrough, coming on as a substitute for
Rob Jones. Next came his
Premiership debut, again coming on as a substitute, against
West Ham. He then started the next game against
Aston Villa and marked the occasion with his first goal, scored in front of the
Kop.
By the following season Carragher was a regular in the first-team squad and by the 1998–99 campaign was considered a player of real promise - which led to his first full international cap towards the end of the season.
Throughout his early years he was essentially used as a utility player, spending time as a
centre-half, right and left
full-back and
defensive midfield. Because of this he'd be deployed to fill in wherever there was a hole, ultimately harming his ability to hold down a first team position of his own. In
1999–00 he played mainly as a right-back, then in
2000–2001 he made the left-back position his own. By this time Carragher had become a firm fans' favourite for his determination, and "no-nonsense" style of defending. 2001 also saw Carragher gain his first senior trophies: the
FA Cup,
UEFA Cup,
League Cup,
Community Shield and
European Super Cup.
He hit the headlines in January 2002 during an
FA Cup tie against
Arsenal. A coin was thrown from the crowd, and Carragher inexplicably threw it back into the fans. He earned a red card and a disrepute charge from
The Football Association. From 2002 till 2004 Carragher was hit by two serious injuries, firstly missing the
2002 FIFA World Cup for an operation on his troublesome knee and later due to a broken leg in the first half of the 2003-04 season due to a tackle by
Blackburn's Lucas Neill at
Ewood Park in the Reds' fifth game of the season. During this period, Carragher's place in the team was also threatened by signings of
Steve Finnan and
John Arne Riise. However, he succeeded in retaining his place in the team, making 24 appearances in the first half of 2004.
The
2004–05 season was a career defining one for Carragher. New manager
Rafael Benítez moved him to centre-half where he managed 56 appearances alongside
Sami Hyypiä. Carragher finally shrugged off the utility tag and established himself as a centre half. Carragher developed a reputation as a strong and positionally astute defender. . His partnership with Hyypia was central in Liverpool's
2004-2005 UEFA Champions League victory. One of the most memorable moments of the match was when Carragher made two vital last ditch intercept into extra time whilst suffering from cramp. Carragher was voted as Liverpool's player of the year at the end of the campaign. He later went on to captain in the team in their 2005
UEFA Super Cup victory when Liverpool won against
CSKA Moscow in
Monte Carlo.
On
13 May2006, Carragher played in the
FA Cup final against
West Ham. It was his tenth final in ten years of club football. In the 21st minute, Carragher rolled the ball into his own net after a strong cross from the Hammers' full-back
Lionel Scaloni got caught under his own feet. Despite this Liverpool went on to win 3–1 on penalties after the match finished 3–3 after extra-time.
On
9 December2006, Carragher scored his first league goal since January 1999, in a match against
Fulham at
Anfield. His central defence partner
Agger flicked the ball on from a corner, and Carragher slid the ball under Fulham keeper
Jan Lastuvka at the far post, sparking wild scenes of celebration that displayed the Kop's admiration for the player. 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 record for the most appearances in European competition for the club. His 90th European match took him past
Ian Callaghan's 89 matches between 1964 and 1978. After this match he was also named Man of the Match for his outstanding display despite suffering with cramp. Carragher was voted as Liverpool's Player of the Year for the
2006-07 season by the fans and soon after extended his contract till 2011. That season also saw Carragher's controversial international retirement, with the defender citing frustration with a lack of appearances under
Steve McClaren.
The 2007-2008 season saw Carragher reach his 500th appearance for Liverpool, in a season in which he continued to be a first choice defender for the club.
Carragher's appearance against Arsenal on 5th April 2008 saw him overtake Kenny Dalglish in the all time Liverpool appearances table.
Carragher currently stands at number 11 in the all time Liverpool appearances table in all competitions.
International career
In 1996, before signing a professional contract or making his league début, Carragher had his first appearance for the
England under-21 team. Playing as a
defensive midfielder, he became a regular for the team, and eventually
captain. In 2000, when he became ineligible for the team, he held the national record for most caps at this level, with 27. The record was eclipsed in 2007 by
Scott Carson.
On
28 April1999 he made his début for the senior England team, as a substitute against
Hungary. He made his full international début against
Holland at
White Hart Lane in 2001. Carragher missed the 2002 World Cup through injury, but travelled with England to
Euro 2004. He eventually ended up with no playing time, losing out to
Ledley King when a vacancy opened up. He was selected for the England squad for the
2006 World Cup in
Germany, and wasn't in the original starting eleven, but came into the team after
Gary Neville suffered an injury.
Carragher's versatility has seen him occupy centre-back, right-back, left-back and defensive midfield positions for England. Despite his many caps and regular squad appearances, he's never held down a consistent place in the starting eleven. Former England manager
Sven-Göran Eriksson generally used two center -backs from
John Terry,
Rio Ferdinand and
Sol Campbell in preference to Carragher, but occasionally used Carragher as right-back as deputy for
Gary Neville, as he did during the 2006 World Cup.
On
1 July 2006 Carragher was one of three players to have a penalty saved by
Ricardo Pereira, as England yet again succumbed on penalties to exit the 2006 World Cup in the quarter finals against
Portugal. Carragher, who had been brought on as a substitute for
Aaron Lennon in the dying moments of the game, presumably with the "shoot-out" in mind, was the most unfortunate of the three players who missed, as he scored with his first attempt but was forced to re-take the kick by the referee, who hadn't blown his whistle. Carragher then saw his second effort saved.
On
July 9,
2007 it was reported that Carragher was thinking of retiring from the England set-up.
TalkSport Radio Presenter
Adrian Durham accused Carragher of "bottling it" and was asked by one caller if he'd say that to Carragher's face. Durham said that he'd but was surprised when Carragher actually did phone in. He then confirmed that he was thinking about leaving the national set-up but he'd already had two talks with the England head coach
Steve McClaren and would leave it until the upcoming match against
Germany to decide.
Carragher did subsequently retire from International football. England former head coach
Steve McClaren attempted to persuade him to return to the International setup on at least one occasion, whilst McClaren's replacement
Fabio Capello has reportedly suggested that he'd be happy to consider Carragher. Carragher's responses have suggested that he wouldn't respond positively to any offers of a call-up. Carragher was said to have been unhappy at the failure of successive England managers to pick him at centre-back, preferring to use him as cover along the back four and even as a holding midfielder.
Private life
Carragher grew up on Knowsley Road in Bootle and lived with his mother Paula, father Phil and brothers Paul & John and attended St James RC school. He currently lives in Blundellsands, which is situated approximately five miles north of
Bootle.
In
2005, Carragher starred in an anti-bullying
music video for
Liverpool band Just 3, entitled Stand Tall. The video was directed by
Samantha Janus, and was heavily backed by Childline ambassador
Esther Rantzen.
In
July 2005, he married his childhood sweetheart, Nicola Hart, with whom he's two children, James and Mia.
On July 25th his teamate at the time
Djibril Cisse confirmed Jamie wore a liverpool jersey on his wedding
Carragher received the
freedom of his home borough of
Sefton for his local charity work and "the exceptional example he sets to the youth of today."
Carragher also owns a restaurant in Liverpool called "Cafe Sport England Restaurant". It has over 200 Plasma TVs on the walls and only two things are shown on all of these TVs at once - football and rugby union.
On
28th February 2008, Carragher was arrested and cautioned for assault outside a school near his home in Crosby.
Liverpool F.C. refused to comment.
Statistics
Correct as of 2 May 2008
Club performance>
| Club |
Season |
Premiership |
FA Cup |
League Cup |
Europe |
Others |
Total |
| App |
Goals |
App |
Goals |
App |
Goals |
App |
Goals |
App |
Goals |
App |
Goals |
| Liverpool FC |
2007-08 |
33 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
13 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
53 |
0 |
| 2006-07 |
35 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
12 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
49 |
1 |
| 2005-06 |
36 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
13 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
57 |
1 |
| 2004-05 |
38 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
15 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
56 |
0 |
| 2003-04 |
22 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
29 |
0 |
| 2002-03 |
35 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
5 |
0 |
11 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
54 |
0 |
| 2001-02 |
33 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
16 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
53 |
0 |
| 2000-01 |
34 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
12 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
58 |
0 |
| 1999-00 |
36 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
40 |
0 |
| 1998-99 |
34 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
44 |
1 |
| 1997-98 |
20 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
23 |
0 |
| 1996-97 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3 |
1 |
| Total |
|
358 |
3 |
28 |
0 |
26 |
0 |
103 |
1 |
4 |
0 |
521 |
4 |
Career honours
Liverpool
2000–01, 2005–06
League Cup:
2000–01, 2002–03
UEFA Champions League:
2004–05
UEFA Cup:
2000–01
Community Shield:
2001, 2006
European Super Cup:
2001, 2005
Runner Up
2001–02
Community Shield:
2002
League Cup:
2004–05
FIFA Club World Championship:
2005
UEFA Champions League:
2006–07
Personal
PFA Team of the Year:
2005-2006
Further Information
Get more info on 'Jamie Carragher'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://jamie_carragher.totallyexplained.com">Jamie Carragher Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
