Jay-Jay Okocha has weighed in on the Jamie Carragher debate after the pundit was criticised over his Africa Cup of Nations snub.
Carragher has faced the heat in the last couple of days after giving a reasoned argument for why he thinks the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is not a ‘major tournament’.
On Sunday, the Liverpool legend suggested that Mohamed Salah is disadvantaged in the yearly debate for the Ballon d’Or due to not being able to win a ‘major’ international tournament – in his eyes, the Euros, Copa America, or the World Cup (for which Egypt are not heavily fancied).
Carragher has since provided a lengthy explanation for his claim via a post online, however his opinion still brought criticism from the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Micah Richards, and Rio Ferdinand – while former Chelsea and Nigeria star John Obi Mikel told the 47-year-old to ‘f*** off’.
And Okocha, who earned legendary status at Bolton and PSG during his distinguished career, has now taken issue with Carragher.
‘There are some players that will say something, but you just overlook it,’ said Okocha, who scored 14 goals in 73 games for Nigeria and won AFCON in 1994.
Jay-Jay Okocha has become the latest African legend to throw shade at Jamie Carragher
The Liverpool icon had suggested that the Africa Cup of Nations is not a ‘major tournament’
Carragher made the comments on TV and has been called out by pundits and former players
‘If you look at their career, if you look at the type of football they played… then you can understand.
‘I mean you wouldn’t want your son to be like Carragher. So you can never appreciate African football (if you’re like that) – and all the talents that are coming from Africa.’
The furore had begun on Sunday following Liverpool’s victory over Man City following another stunning display from Salah, with pundits left discussing whether the forward could win the Ballon d’Or this year.
However, Carragher was pulled up 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 a major tournament as such, or maybe got a great chance of winning, I think it’s either the Champions League or the major tournament (that is needed to win the award).
‘Normally, the player who excels in that (wins it), like Vini Jr and (Kylian) Mbappe right now, Real Madrid are looking really good going for the Champions League.
‘Liverpool will be in that conversation, but right now (Real) are certainly the front runner.’
Richards hit back: ‘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?
Carragher claimed Salah’s hopes of winning the Ballon d’Or are impacted by playing for Egypt
Nigeria legend Okocha claimed that ‘you wouldn’t want your son to be like Carragher’
‘You remember when him and Mane was going for it and…’
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.’
After being criticised by a number of ex-pros, Carragher took to X on Monday night to provide a full explanation for his claim about AFCON.
He wrote: ‘The point I was trying to make yesterday was that MO Salah is at a disadvantage playing for Egypt in terms of him winning the Ballon D’or.
‘If Salah had an average season at LFC but won the AFCON & was MVP I don’t think he would win the Ballon d’or.
‘Because I don’t think AFCON carries the weight of other tournaments. But if Mbappe had an average season at Real Madrid but won the World Cup/Euros he would still have a great opportunity.
‘It’s not just about certain tournaments, Shevchenko (Ukraine) Lewandowski (Poland) were never going to win the WC/Euros to help their case for the prize. I don’t think it’s controversial at all really it’s just a fact.
‘I know Mane came 2nd a few years back after winning the tournament but that alone wouldn’t have got him to that position, it was LFC being two games away from a quadruple that played a big role also.
On Monday, Carragher broke his silence on the matter with a lengthy post on social media
Rio Ferdinand also spoke out against Carragher and said it was an ‘ignorant thought process’
Carragher hit out at Ferdinand and labelled his former rival a ‘clown’ for ‘playing to the gallery’
Former President of Liberia George Weah is Africa’s sole Ballon d’Or winner, doing so in 1995
‘It’s not disrespectful if I feel the WC (World Cup)/Euros/CA (Copa America) are better tournaments it’s just my opinion when I watch them. Saying it wasn’t a major competition was clumsy but I think most people watching could understand the point I was trying to make.
‘The face I pulled when Micah interjected was nothing to do with the merits of the tournament, I just knew as soon as he did what the reaction was going to be! I get a lot people didn’t like what I said & that’s fine.
‘I don’t normally respond to things on here with posts like this but I decided to tweet in the end after seeing so many phoneys jumping on the bandwagon & playing to the gallery when they knew what I meant.’
Carragher was also targeted by former Man United defender Rio Ferdinand, who questioned the pundit’s comments during a recent podcast episode.
However, Carragher wasn’t happy with the former United defender’s take.
‘I didn’t say that you clown,’ Carragher commented on the Instagram post of his former rival discussing the subject. ‘Stop playing to the gallery like you always do.’
Ballon d’Or winners have often tasted glory in either the Champions League or an international tournament – typically the European Championship or Copa America. No African star has won the gong since George Weah in 1995, while Sadio Mane finished second in the 2022 edition.
