Liverpool

Liverpool

Premier League • England

Carragher omits Liverpool superstar pair from all-time XI; makes ‘end of career’ claim on current star

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Jamie Carragher, Alisson

Jamie Carragher has omitted Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alisson from his all-time Liverpool XI

Jamie Carragher has omitted two current Liverpool superstars from his all-time XI at the club, but feels one will make it in at the “end of his career” suggesting he feels he will stay despite exit rumours.

Liverpool had a lot of success under Jurgen Klopp, following a low period for the club just prior to his appointment. Over his nine-year career at Anfield, he won two League Cups, an FA Cup, a Premier League and a Champions League.

A lot of those came in the second half of those nine years, when the likes of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alisson had bedded themselves firmly into the best side at the club.

But according to Carragher, the latter pair do not make it into his all-time XI.

“I would go with Ray Clemence just over Alisson, just for the fact he won so many trophies,” he said on Stick to Football.

“Right-back, Phil Neal or Trent. Steve Nicol might do a job for me at left-back – when you think of players who have played for AC Milan and won the European Cup four of five times and we go ‘wow’, [same with] Real Madrid and Barcelona players – Neal won four European Cups – it’s unbelievable.

“At the end of Trent’s career, I’ll probably say Trent, but I’ll go with Neal due to the fact he’s won four European Cups. I would go with Virgil van Dijk and Alan Hansen – that would be a great partnership [at centre-back].”

Van Dijk makes it into the side, as does Salah, Liverpool’s third-highest scorer of all-time.

“On the right, there’s two options. Before Mo Salah joined the club, Ian Callaghan. He is the only player who has played more games for Liverpool than me. He played 860 games, and he won the second division with Liverpool and then one of his last games was the 1977 European Cup final,” Carragher added.

“So, you think of that journey from being a second division player, a local player, but Mo Salah’s got to go in on that right side.”

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Carragher suggests TAA may stay

That Carragher feels Alexander-Arnold can make it into the all-time club XI at the end of his career suggests he feels he’ll be at the club for a few years more.

But he is reaching the end of his contract, and Real Madrid are pushing hard for him.

TEAMtalk recently revealed that the defender is happy at Liverpool, but that does not mean his head won’t be turned by the La Liga giants.

He may well reject a contract offer – which will surely be coming – in order to head to Real, with the club constantly contacting his agents.

Liverpool plotting defender moves

And there are moves on the cards to replace another Liverpool superstar, Van Dijk, if he is to leave at the end of his contract, which is also this summer.

TEAMtalk understands that four men: Gleison Bremer, Marc Guehi, Loic Bade and Goncalo Inacio are all on their radar, not yet knowing if Van Dijk will stay.

Sources also state that Milos Kerkez is being tracked by the Reds, who want to source a long-term left-back signing.

Meanwhile, midfield man Martin Zubimendi is reportedly regretting turning Liverpool down in the summer, and wants to backtrack on that decision, giving them hope of signing him.

How do omitted Liverpool stars rank in club history

Alexander-Arnold and Alisson were the two big omissions from Carragher’s all-time XI.

The former is towards the top of the Reds’ highest assisters in history, with 58.

But Neal, who Carragher had ahead of him at right-back, assisted 42 times for the club, and also scored 59 goals, while winning eight league titles, so it seems there may be some distance for the current era player to go before he is on his level.

Meanwhile, current goalkeeper Alisson has 115 clean sheets in 268 appearances. Clemence, though, kept a clean sheet in 323 of 665 appearances, so has him covered in terms of both clean sheets and the percentage of them per game.

He also won five top-flight trophies and three European cups.