Jamie Carragher hits back as controversial Premier League list questioned

Jamie Carragher has riled up supporters after naming his top 10 Premier League goalkeepers of all time, with the Liverpool legend not taking the criticism for his list lying down

Jamie Carragher has hit back after receiving backlash for his top 10 goalkeepers list(Image: Sky Sports)

Jamie Carragher has gone on the attack on social media after the Liverpool legend’s latest TV appearance caused quite a stir.

The former defender is no stranger to receiving backlash from supporters, but he might not have expected his top 10 list of Premier League goalkeepers to rile people up so much.

Carragher appeared on the latest episode of Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football alongside former Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar, and revealed his list after the Red Devils’ 1-0 win over Everton, which saw them move three points clear of Liverpool in the race for Champions League qualification.

Van der Sar himself featured on the list, although he only made it to number six, which the former Dutch international took in good humor.

Ahead of him, in order from number one, were Petr Cech, Peter Schmeichel, Alisson Becker, David De Gea and Thibaut Courtois. Making up the rest of the list were Ederson, Neville Southall, David Seaman and Pepe Reina.

Although Van der Sar seemed fairly happy with his position, Carragher’s picks have proven more controversial with some supporters, leading to the Reds icon hitting back on X.

Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker made Carragher's top three, but proved a controversial choice among some rival fans(Image: Robbie Jay Barratt - AMA/Getty Images)

Responding to a post asking users whether they agreed with the top 10, Carragher wrote: “Very much so! I will now go to war on my choices so let’s go!!”

And he was true to his word in an extraordinary blitz as he responded to a number of complaints from fans of various teams.

First in the firing line was a United fan, who insisted Schmeichel should have been at number one, and suggested the Liverpool legend would never put one of the Reds’ rivals top of his list.

“I’ve put 3 in the top 6!” Carragher responded.

Next was a supporter claiming Courtois’ inclusion was “indefensible,” to which Carragher replied: “Won two PL in four years... Chelsea stopped winning PL’s until he joined!”

Everton legend Southall’s inclusion was questioned by a number of people, with Carragher - who was a fan of the Toffees before joining Liverpool’s academy - firing back: “Southall will be on any list I ever do on goal keepers! The rest are lucky we aren’t judging them on their whole career as he’d be top!!”

De Gea’s position above fellow former United keeper Van der Sar caused a stir, with Carragher justifying his placements: “5 PFA ToTY DDG a record in the PL! Gave the best performance I’ve seen from GK in the PL era away at Arsenal.”

And when the positioning of Liverpool’s Alisson in third was questioned, he responded: “The top three is not even close! It’s just what order you put them in.”

Another Liverpool goalkeeper’s inclusion raised the ire of one fan, who insisted Jens Lehmann should have been picked over Reina.

Carragher went on the attack after his list proved controversial with some fans

“The best clean sheet percentage of any goal keeper in PL history!” Carragher replied, before poking fun at himself, having played alongside Reina for years. “Their job is to stop goals so he has to be in just for that. People can debate whether that’s the goalkeeper or defenders in front of him.”

Justifying his list to another supporter, Carragher explained: “This decision changed throughout the day... couldn’t be split on the stats & World goalie of the year (4each) I went for Cech just for his performance in Munich in the clubs biggest ever game. I might change again the future.”

Liverpool.com says: You can’t argue too much with the players chosen by Carragher, just maybe on the positioning of some of them. But then, it’s his list, and he was never going to keep every fan of every team happy.

Having said that, Courtois might be a little fortunate to be in the top five, considering his best years have probably come while at Real Madrid. And we should know, especially after THAT 2022 Champions League final…