While Carragher Considers, England Ails

Part of me does have genuine sympathy for Jamie Carragher and the plight of his international career.

A top Premiership and Champions League defender with power, heading, good anticipation, reading and excellent defensive leadership, he is arguably as responsible for Liverpool’s continual appearance in the Champions League as Steven Gerrard.

In a recent radio interview Carragher answered suggestions that he was that most spurned of footballing beasts; the “bottler”, for “considering” his England future.

The interviewer was clearly of the opinion that if at first you don’t succeed, try try again, and it’s hard not to agree with him.

The underlying problem with Carragher’s stance is that he believes – acceptable in the context of England teams – that being a regular Champions League player guarantees you a starting place in the national team. I.e. if you have played well against Barcelona and Milan then you will play well for England.

This is arguably the most debilitating afflicting of the England team and English game. Players assume that because the Champions League is the highest quality of football, that if they perform in that competition, not only are they automatically proven at all other levels but that they now have the right to be picked automatically. Few things can be more damaging.

First, the cardinal rule of team selection should always be; you are only as good as your last match. Play badly last match? Someone else gets a chance to prove themselves. Obviously there are exceptions, if you have proven yourself again and again at a given level (see D. Beckham) then you might be permitted the odd off performance or more chances in the future. However if you have had chances and not performed, then you must not be led to assume that you will get another chance. A chance in the England team as starter or substitute should be like gold dust and the player should feel that the fates have aligned if he gets the opportunity. If a player fails, they must feel that failure and either become better so that they might take their next chance or prove that they are not tough enough – mentally or physically – for that level. Champions League may be better technically, but no pressure can be as strong as playing for your entire nation.

Similarly, if you get your chance and take it, you earn your place. A great example would be Darius Vassell, a man who seems to personify mediocrity (at Aston Villa at the time he was in the England squad) who got his chance with England from the bench and shone brightly every time he came off it. He was in fact our ‘ace in the hole’ at the last European Championships when bringing him off the bench after 75 minutes meant the tiring opposition defenders had to deal with skill, pace and energy just when they didn’t want to. Sadly for all concerned, Rooney got injured, Vassell had to play a whole match and was discarded forever. But he took his chances and earned his place (albeit as a regular and valuable substitute).

The second problem manifests itself at the Premier League level. With the assumption of an England starting place for Champions League players comes the (understandable) notion that to be an international player you must be a Champions League player. What hope did Everton have of keeping Wayne Rooney? How much of Shaun Wright-Phillips’, Wayne Bridge’s, Scott Parker’s et al’s decisions to join Chelsea were motivated by their international desires? The way the England team has been picked in the past says to every young English player, “stay at your club and you’ll never play for England”.

The top 4 monopoly is self-perpetuating enough without a misguided national selection policy to help it.

So we get to the crux of Carragher’s problem; he has never really played that well for England. He has never really taken his chance yet he assumes he should be picked. Ledley King is not only a younger player with more tools (pace, ball-playing) but with the exception of playing defensive midfield against Juan Román Riquelme he has never had a bad game.

Add to this Carragher’s playing style – notionally he is the hard, tough-tacking, aerially commanding “commanding” centreback. Vital in any 442 centreback pairing, however equally as vital is the partner – the reading, cultured, pacey centreback. Together, this partnership covers all eventualities and allows for even mistakes to be overcome. You can look at most of the best Premiership teams and see the division of skills in each partnership:

Chelsea: Commanding – John Terry, Cultured – Ricardo Carvalho

Manchester United: Commanding – Nemanja Vidic, Cultured – Rio Ferdinand

Arsenal – Commanding -William Gallas, Cultured – Kolo Touré

Tottenham – Commanding -Michael Dawson, Cultured – Ledley King

Liverpool – Commanding -Jamie Carragher, Cultured – Daniel Agger

Of course the division is not always clear but more often than not, one is more mobile and with better ability on the ball (cultured) who cuts out pacey counter attacks, balls in behind, dribblers etc. , the other is slower and better in the air (commanding) and deals with crosses and physical confrontations.
The important part is that you need one of each for a balanced seamless defence. So the problem Carragher has is that John Terry – a commanding centreback – plays for England, not Ledley King. Kudos to Steve Maclaren for having the strength of mind to pick a valid partnership but the supreme irony is that he completely undermines that good work because John Terry never earned his place in the starting lineup before being made captain (and hence becoming undroppable). So Maclaren has no real choice but to play Rio Ferdinand or Ledley King. Neither of whom ever seem to have a bad game for their national team, which is handy.

One final point. As far as I can tell, Carragher has not actually retired, but is considering his future because he ‘doesn’t get a game’. Well you can understand the disappointment and frustration but he has failed to prove himself and plays a position that England does not need. I wonder if Ian Wright or Stuart Pearce would ever have considered their future in similar circumstances?

The consideration of Jamie Carragher is a symptom of a far more damage problem ingrained in English football and perhaps best characterised by the multitudinous chances afforded to a certain goalscoring midfielder (read, ‘non-goalscoring midfielder’ for his country).

The root of the problem is the expectation of Champions League players and the sooner that expectation is removed, the better.