“I was clumsy” – Jamie Carragher responds to Okocha, Mikel Obi over AFCON scuffle

Former England and Liverpool defender, Jamie Carragher, has responded to Okocha, Mikel Obi and other Nigerians who bashed him for his belittling statement about the AFCON tournament, Soccernet.ng reports.

The 2005 UEFA Champions League winner revealed his fears about Mo Salah not winning the Ballon d’Or due to Egypt’s absence from a major tournament.

Micah Richards and Daniel Sturridge, in response, told Carragher that the AFCON tournament houses Egypt and, therefore, is a major tournament on par with the Euros and Copa America competitions, but the ex-Liverpool man scuffed in disbelief.

Jamie Carragher flippantly disregarding AFCON being a major tournament on Sky Sports tonight. pic.twitter.com/FI2CAFGa5B

— Leo Haider (@leohaider7) February 23, 2025

Mikel, and Jay Jay Okocha, in response, didn’t take it lightly with Carragher, as they revealed he was in no position to criticize the tournament.

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After the backlash he received, Carragher has come out to clear the air about what he meant about the AFCON tournament.

“I love debates, but what I would never want to be described as a pundit is ignorant and disrespectful. It was never my aim, whether it’s a team, a player, a continent or a tournament.

“Where I would say I got it wrong is I was clumsy with my language in describing AFCON as not a major tournament. I was trying to explain the merits of Mo Salah winning the Ballon d’Or, and I felt, not just AFCON, the Asian Cup or the Gold Cup. There are five major tournaments besides the World Cup for each continent,” the 47-year-old said on CBS Sports Golazo UEFA Champions League show.

.@Carra23 addresses his AFCON comments pic.twitter.com/eKzfqIEsrv

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 4, 2025

“However, some of them don’t resonate with the people who vote for the Ballon d’Or, and that’s not an opinion; it’s a fact. Look at those who’ve won the award over the last 40-50 years.

“I’ve been rooting for Mo Salah to be the first African player to win the Ballon d’Or since George Weah in the mid 90’s, but I should have been a lot tidier with my language around it, but if you look at where the Euros are right now, it resonates with some of the journalists, national coaches and captains who choose who wins the award.

“One of the reasons is that we forget that the Ballon d’Or was primarily for European football, so maybe there is a bias to European football. It was not my aim to offend anybody,” the former Liverpool defender concluded.

Mo Salah is a front runner for the World Best Player award this season, as he’s heralded Liverpool to a title charge in the English Premier league, while they’re still gunning for glory in Europe.

The Egyptian winger has scored 30 goals and provided 22 assists in 39 games across all competitions for Arne Slot’s side this term and has a chance of lifting something tangible with Egypt when the AFCON 2025 tournament kicks off in December.