Dad, I want to be a Maltese legend Liverpool legend son made surprise naturalization to 168th place in FIFA rankings

Mar 18, 2025

Source=Sky Sports

Jamie Carragher's son, who played for the English national team and big club Liverpool in the past, is set to play in the A-match as a member of the Maltese national team after acquiring Maltese citizenship.

Sports broadcaster 「CBSSports」 reported on the 16th (local time) that James Carragher (23), a defender who plays for English club Wigan Athletic, will make his debut through 2026 European qualifiers against Finland (21st) and Poland (24th) after changing his nationality from England to Malta.

James' grandfather and Jamie's father are from Malta, and Jamie is also said to have Maltese citizenship.

Source=Malta National Football Team SNS

Emilio de Leo, coach of the Malta national team, ranked 168th in FIFA, announced the final list of 26 players, including James, on the 15th. Malta was in Group G, such as Finland, Poland, and Rio Taina.

Malta, one of the weakest in Europe, has yet to make it to the finals of major tournaments such as the World Cup and the European Championship.

James, a 1m 92 center back, grew up in Liverpool Youth, where his father worked, but he moved to the Wigan Youth Team in 2017 after failing to overcome tough competition.

James, who made his professional debut in 2021 at the age of 19, played 22 English League One (third division) games as Wigan's main defender this season after two loan spells.

Source=Sky Sports

Wigan, once known for representing the English Premier League (EPL), has been in the third tier for a second season after being relegated to the third tier through the 2022-2023 season.

Jamie Carragher is a Liverpool one-club man legend who played 38 A matches for England from 1999 to 2010. Currently, he is active as a broadcaster.

Last month, Mohamed Salah, who is from Africa (Egypt), said that the reason why he failed to win a major championship was because he was not nominated for the Ballon d'Or, which faced strong opposition.

This article was translated by Naver AI translator.