Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher has named his all-time Reds XI and just two of the current crop of players have made the cut.
With Liverpool’s most consistent glory days coming in the second half of the 1970s and first few years of the ’80s, it is those teams that are best represented in Carragher’s side.
A couple of current Anfield stars were on the cusp of the team, but narrowly missed out, although Carragher says they still have time to change that.
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, brought to you by Sky Bet, Carragher started with a three-time European Cup-winning goalkeeper.
‘I would go with Ray Clemence just over Alisson [Becker], just for the fact he won so many trophies,’ he said.
‘Right back, Phil Neal or Trent [Alexander-Arnold]. 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]. Andy Robertson may come into the equation, but Liverpool haven’t had a history of unbelievable left-backs – even when they were successful.
‘I’m going to go for Nicol at left-back, he had a great combination with the guy in front of him who’s going to play, John Barnes in that late 80’s team. Nicol was a player a little similar to me – right back, centre-back, left back, but he was that good for Liverpool.’
Carragher feels the centre of the pitch picks itself, while there are also obvious choices up front.
‘Graeme Souness has to be in central midfield alongside Steven Gerrard,’ Carragher continued.
Carragher’s all-time Liverpool XI
GK – Ray Clemence
RB – Phil Neal
CB – Virgil van Dijk
CB – Alan Hansen
LB – Steve Nicol
RW – Mohamed Salah
CM – Graeme Souness
CM – Steven Gerrard
LW – John Barnes
CF – Kenny Dalglish
CF – Ian Rush
‘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.
‘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.’
‘Kenny Dalglish has got to play [up front] and Ian Rush goes in because of what he won.’
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