Jamie Carragher is spot on over England World Cup fears - and this is why

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Considering his 38th and final international appearance was in one of England’s most forgettable tournament matches, it is understandable that Jamie Carragher does not get too giddy over the World Cup.

Carragher won his last cap in the absolute stinker of a group game against Algeria in Cape Town at South Africa 2010. As he walked off the pitch after the goalless draw with Algeria, Wayne Rooney criticised England’s own fans with a sarcastic remark into a TV camera. It was that sort of occasion.

It was one of several sour moments in England’s tournament history. Carragher featured twice in the 2010 tournament and made four appearances in Germany in 2006.

Speaking on The Overlap, brought to you by SkyBet, Carragher said: “I played in a couple of World Cups … I don’t think I enjoyed the experience. I didn’t love it. I didn’t come away thinking … wow, I was part of the World Cup. There were a lot of negatives.”

England were beaten in the quarter-finals by Portugal in 2006 and, infamously, were beaten by Germany in the round of 16 in 2010. In the last two editions, England have been eliminated in the quarter-finals by France and in the semi-finals by Croatia in 2018.

Generally, it seems, English experiences have been more positive than they were in Carragher’s playing days. And from a squad-harmony point of view, that will probably be the case at World Cup 2026, as Carragher explains.

He said: “I think when you look at the squad, Thomas Tuchel put energy, athleticism and harmony over talent. I know Anthony Barry ( Tuchel's assistant) a little, and they put great store in this togetherness and how we're going to be as a group for, hopefully, six weeks."

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Carragher is right. If England go deep into this tournament - which starts on Thursday - it is unlikely to be a run based on mercurial moments, on showreel highlights.

“I think England will find it tough in this tournament, if I’m being honest,” Carragher said. “You look at the squad that has been picked and there are a lot of good players in there but I class a lot of them as good Premier League players.

“I don’t look at all of them and think … that’s an international player there. So, I wouldn’t say I’m the most optimistic right now.”

Perhaps those past experiences have played a part in Carragher’s pessimism. But his reservations about England’s chances are perfectly understandable.

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Naturally, the England squad is full of accomplished operators, that goes without saying. But Carragher’s point is that it is light on stardust.

And that is because Tuchel has gone without Phil Foden, Cole Palmer and Trent Alexander-Arnold. In the first two cases, Tuchel has, presumably, gone on form, gone on Palmer’s and Foden’s struggle for club form. In Alexander-Arnold’s case, Tuchel has clearly never been a fan.

“You look at how they (England) are going to go about winning the World Cup. It won’t be about playing amazing football,” Carragher said.

He is almost certainly right. Tuchel’s England might well advance far into World Cup 2026 but it its going to be a tough watch. You can be sure of that.