Micah Richards and Daniel Sturridge were quick to correct Jamie Carragher after the Liverpool legend’s slip in the Sky Sports studio following Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Manchester City.
The Reds took a huge step towards their second Premier League title on Sunday with a dominant performance at the Etihad, extending their lead over Arsenal to 11 points with 11 games left.
Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai were on target in a brilliant first half from the Reds, with the Egyptian star scoring an assisting in the same game for the 11th time this campaign.
As such, the talk in the studio quickly turned to Salah’s stature within the game, and whether or not he was in the running for elite individual awards such as the Ballon d’Or.
Former Reds forward Sturridge began by claiming that Salah wants to become ‘the best in the world’, though for Carragher there was one perceived obstacle in his way.
‘I think the problem (is) the fact he’s with Egypt, and he’s probably not playing in the major tournament as such, or maybe got a great chance of winning, I think it’s either the Champions League or the major tournament.
Mohamed Salah starred for Liverpool in their 2-0 victory over Manchester City on Sunday
Jamie Carragher came in for criticism after seemingly not considering the Africa Cup of Nations a ‘major tournament’
Salah is Egypt’s second-highest goal scorer of all time with 59 strikes in his 103 appearances
‘Normally, the player who excels in that, like Vini Jr and (Kylian) Mbappe right now, Real Madrid looking really good going for the Champions League.
‘Liverpool will be in that conversation, but right now (Los Blancos) are certainly the front runner.’
However, Carragher quickly came under fire on social media for not including the Africa Cup of Nations as a ‘major tournament’.
Though Salah himself has never lifted the African continental title, he has twice finished second, doing so in 2017 and 2021.
Moreover, The Pharaohs are the most successful team in the competition’s history with an impressive seven titles, and will have a chance to go for crown No 8 at the end of 2025.
As such, both Sturridge and Richards were quick to correct Carragher, with Richards stating: ‘Just to say, AFCON is a major tournament because a lot of people are at home saying “they aren’t taking it serious”. AFCON is a big tournament, just so you know.’
Carragher then responded by asking whether Egypt would be in contention to win the World Cup next year, to which the former Man City defender responded: ‘No, but AFCON is big, isn’t it?
‘You remember when him and Mane was going for it and…’
The Liverpool talisman finished second twice for Egypt in AFCON, doing so in 2017 and 2021
Rodri is the current holder of the Ballon d’Or after winning both the Premier League and Euros
Carragher then replied ‘Oh God’, before Sturridge brought the matter to a close: ‘It’s a fact. It’s a fact. It’s a fact. If you win the Euros or Copa America it’s deemed to be big so the AFCON is in the same level.’
With 25 goals so far this season, and Liverpool potentially going for a treble this season – Premier League, Champions League, Carabao Cup – Salah will surely be one of the leading contenders this year for the Ballon d’Or.
As Carragher points out, players that perform well in either the Champions League or international competitions usually tend to win the award in the modern era.
Holder Rodri starred for Spain in the Euros last year, Lionel Messi guided Argentina to the World Cup crown in 2022 to win it in 2023, and Karim Benzema steered Real Madrid to a Champions League crown before being named 2022 winner.
AFCON will return at the end of the year, with Morocco playing host for the second time, and Egypt will be one of the favourites to go all the way.
Alongside Salah will be his Manchester City rival Omar Marmoush, who joined the Premier League’s reigning champions in January after a stunning first half of the campaign with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga.
