Former Chelsea player John Obi Mikel has told Jamie Carragher to ‘f*** off’ after the pundit received criticism for his Africa Cup of Nations snub.
Carragher has faced criticism in recent days for presenting a reasoned argument for why he believes the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is not a’major tournament’.
On Sunday, the Liverpool legend suggested that Mohamed Salah is at a disadvantage in the annual Ballon d’Or debate because he has yet to win a major international tournament, such as the Euros, Copa America, or World Cup.
Carragher has since provided a lengthy explanation for his claim in an online post, but his opinion has still elicited criticism from Daniel Sturridge, Micah Richards, and Rio Ferdinand, with Mikel now joining in.
Mikel stated on The Obi One Podcast: “It’s so disrespectful what he said, and this is coming from someone who has never won a major international competition with England.”
‘His statement was absolutely incorrect. I believe he should apologise to people worldwide. It was ignorant to disrespect such a wonderful tournament.
‘If you think the Premier League would be what it is today with only English players, you’re f***ing kidding, mate.
‘The arrogant f***ing smirk on his face as he dismissed… The smirk on his face was exactly what tipped me off. You have people trying to correct you, and you come out and attack everyone else, discrediting this wonderful tournament.
‘The guy says so many things on TV, has never won the Premier League, analyses teams, and tells them they must win the Premier League.
‘You’ve never won it; you have no idea what it takes to win the f***ing Premier League or your national team. You can’t criticise such a wonderful tournament. People in Africa die for the African Cup of Nations.
‘I am f***ing angry; he spent so many years playing for Liverpool and didn’t win the f***ing Premier League. Week after week, he sits there telling and teaching people how to win the Premier League. You have not won it.
‘Africans watch you over the weekend, and you sit there, open your mouth, and discredit the entire f***ing African continent. He can f**k off. We know in Africa what we bring to the Premier League.
‘If you won the Euros with England, or any major tournament with England, I’d understand. You won f*** all with England. F*** all. And you’re trying to discredit the tournament I won and fought for?
During his playing career, Mikel won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013 and finished second twice.
Carragher was called out live on air by Sturridge and Richards for saying: ‘I think the problem (is) the fact he (Salah) is with Egypt, and he’s probably not playing in the major tournament as such, or maybe he has a great chance of winning, I think it’s either the Champions League or the major tournament.
‘Normally, the player who excels in that, like Vini Jr and (Kylian) Mbappe right now, Real Madrid is looking very good for the Champions League.
“Liverpool will be in that conversation, but right now (Los Blancos) are unquestionably the front runner.”
Richards responded: ‘Just to say, AFCON is a major tournament because many people are at home saying “they aren’t taking it seriously.” AFCON is a major tournament, just so you know.
Carragher then asked if Egypt would be in contention to win the World Cup next year, to which the former Manchester City defender replied: ‘No, but AFCON is big, isn’t it?
“You remember when he and Mane were going for it and…”
Carragher then replied ‘Oh God’, before Sturridge concluded: ‘It’s a fact. This is a fact. This is a fact. If you win the Euros or the Copa America, it’s considered big, so the AFCON is on the same level.
Following criticism from a number of ex-pros, Carragher took to X on Monday night to provide a full explanation for his AFCON claim.
He wrote: “The point I was trying to make yesterday was that MO Salah is at a disadvantage playing for Egypt in terms of winning the Balon d’Or.
‘If Salah had an average season at Liverpool but won the AFCON and was MVP, I doubt he’d win the Balon d’or.
‘Because I do not believe AFCON carries the same weight as other tournaments. However, if Mbappe had an average season at Real Madrid but won the World Cup/Euros, he would still have a fantastic opportunity.
‘It’s not just about specific tournaments; Shevchenko (Ukraine) and Lewandowski (Poland) were never going to win the World Cup/Euros to strengthen their case for the prize. I do not think it is controversial at all; it is simply a fact.
‘I know Mane finished second a few years ago after winning the tournament, but that alone would not have gotten him there; LFC being two games away from a quadruple also played a big role.
‘It is not disrespectful if I believe the WC/Euros/CP are better tournaments; it is simply my opinion based on watching them. Saying it wasn’t a major competition was clumsy, but I believe most people watching understood what I was trying to say.
‘The expression I made when Micah interjected had nothing to do with the merits of the tournament; I just knew what the reaction would be! I understand that many people did not like what I said, and that is fine.
‘I don’t usually respond to things on here with posts like this, but I decided to tweet in the end after seeing so many fakes jumping on the bandwagon and playing to the gallery when they knew what I meant’.
Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand also targeted Carragher, questioning his comments on a recent podcast episode.
He wrote: “The point I was trying to make yesterday was that MO Salah is at a disadvantage playing for Egypt in terms of winning the Balon d’Or.
‘If Salah had an average season at Liverpool but won the AFCON and was MVP, I doubt he’d win the Balon d’or.
‘Because I do not believe AFCON carries the same weight as other tournaments. However, if Mbappe had an average season at Real Madrid but won the World Cup/Euros, he would still have a fantastic opportunity.
‘It’s not just about specific tournaments; Shevchenko (Ukraine) and Lewandowski (Poland) were never going to win the World Cup/Euros to strengthen their case for the prize. I do not think it is controversial at all; it is simply a fact.
‘I know Mane finished second a few years ago after winning the tournament, but that alone would not have gotten him there; LFC being two games away from a quadruple also played a big role.
‘It is not disrespectful if I believe the WC/Euros/CP are better tournaments; it is simply my opinion based on watching them. Saying it wasn’t a major competition was clumsy, but I believe most people watching understood what I was trying to say.
‘The expression I made when Micah interjected had nothing to do with the merits of the tournament; I just knew what the reaction would be! I understand that many people did not like what I said, and that is fine.
‘I don’t usually respond to things on here with posts like this, but I decided to tweet in the end after seeing so many fakes jumping on the bandwagon and playing to the gallery when they knew what I meant’.
Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand also targeted Carragher, questioning his comments on a recent podcast episode.
