40 brilliant tributes to Jamie Carragher on his 40th birthday

The Scouse defender represented the Reds no fewer than 737 times during his outstanding 16-year career at Anfield, winning seven major trophies along the way.

Carragher earned the respect of fans, teammates, managers, former players and opponents by virtue of his class, commitment and professionalism.

If proof were needed of the esteem he is held in, here are 40 homages - taken from our Carragher and Premier League Heroes programmes - to a true great...

“He was unbelievable. 737 appearances and the majority of them were at a consistent level, performances where he has put absolutely everything into it: blood, sweat, determination, desire. Every word that is associated with a top footballer, Jamie showed that in all of those appearances.”

Steven Gerrard

“He brought trophies to the club but he also brought heart. Carra was a true Liverpool warrior.”

Gerard Houllier

“He was a fantastic servant to the club. He never went on the pitch and didn’t give everything he had. He made a huge contribution. He didn’t get a game because he was a local boy – he got a game because he was excellent. He’ll be right up there in the folklore of Liverpool Football Club.”

Kenny Dalglish

“I used to go and watch the reserves all the time and even when he was in the junior teams, you’d say, ‘who is this lad?!’ We had staff meetings and his name always came up.”

Ronnie Moran

“To accumulate that amount of games in a squad system, which I didn’t play in, is fantastic.”

Ian Callaghan

“He had a wonderful career and he has got a lot of medals to prove it. You knew what Carragher was going to do. He was a guy you would like in your team every week.”

Ron Yeats

“To play so many games for any team is a fantastic achievement; in the Premier League it’s even more difficult. That is a great message for all players and especially the local players at the Academy.”

Rafael Benitez

“He is an icon to many young players trying to make it into Liverpool’s first team, and to us that are in the first team now.”

Jordan Henderson

“He was unique as a young person. He came in and lit the place up. He was one of those kids who had unbelievable enthusiasm for the game of football. All you had to do was provide him with a game.”

Steve Heighway

“I believe it’s very important to have players in your squad who carry through the values and history of your club. He was one of them.”

Arsene Wenger

“He never lost his values – he was a grounded lad, a family man. He has been a fantastic example of a local lad who got on with his life, prepared properly for training sessions and matches, and loved playing football. He has never changed.”

Hughie McAuley

“The biggest compliment I can pay Carra is, the way he played and the way he handled himself, he could have played throughout any era at Liverpool Football Club, going back to the early ‘60s with Shanks and right the way through all the different managers and teams. He could have played in all of those sides.”

Phil Thompson

“Jamie Carragher was born to play centre-half.”

Jan Molby

“He was pure Liverpool. He is probably the best Scouser in the world, because he is a great example of what the club is and what the city is.”

Xabi Alonso

“You’re always going to remember Jamie Carragher as a Liverpool player, because that’s the only thing that he played for. He will go down as one of the best in Premier League history.”

Thierry Henry

“Many players came in and tried to keep Jamie Carragher out of the side. Nobody did it.”

Robbie Fowler

“He was a winner. He had a heart twice the size of anyone else. He was just phenomenal.”

John Aldridge

“He was the best defender we had.”

Sami Hyypia

“He was one of the best central defenders in the country and in Europe. To play against him was always a big challenge. We had such great respect [for each other].”

Didier Drogba

“His passion for the game and Liverpool Football Club has been unbelievable.”

Rob Jones

“To play 737 games for any club is special, but to play them for Liverpool is extra special. In this day and age, that sense of loyalty is probably unique.”

Alan Hansen

“He has been a remarkable player. He is a true great. My only regret is that I didn’t have the chance to work with him for longer. He is someone I would have loved to work with for many years.”

Brendan Rodgers

“Can you imagine playing against a team of Carraghers? They would be ruthless.”

Mark Wright

“You probably have to put him in the top 10 of all-time greats, because of his achievements for the football club, the medals he has won and the performances he put in. Being in the top 10 of all-time Liverpool great players is some achievement when you consider the players the club has produced in the past.”

Dietmar Hamann

“Young kids who would like to become a professional should look at Jamie.”

Stephane Henchoz

“For me, an artist is the guy that gives everything to his manager, his club and his fellow players on the pitch. Jamie represented all of that. He was an artist.”

Jose Mourinho

“He never took it easy. He worked at 100 per cent every time. He was the player the team needed, he is a Scouser and he knew the importance of the Liverpool shirt.”

Luis Suarez

“He was the heart of the dressing room.”

Jerzy Dudek

“He ranks very, very highly. He was a superstar, one of the true Liverpool legends.”

Steve McManaman

“He will sit up there with the greats of the game.”

Ian St John

“To play over 700 games for Liverpool Football Club is something special. He will be remembered with all the great legends. I would have liked him to play for the Blue side, but over the years he has certainly been a true Red.”

David Moyes

“Liverpool and Carra were a match made in heaven. He was everything that every Scouser and every Liverpool fan would want in a player.”

Michael Owen

“These days it is very hard to find players like him. Most players just want to attack and score goals. He was happy to defend because he knew that other players could do the rest.”

Lucas Leiva

“Jamie Carragher was Jamie Carragher – fantastic for Liverpool and fantastic for football.”

Roy Evans

“He has to be considered as one of the most important players in Liverpool’s history.”

Pepe Reina

 “I loved him. He was a fantastic example for any young lad that wants to be a player, to show the dedication he did. He was a really, really good professional.”

Alex Ferguson

“If there is a spirit of Shankly or a spirit of Anfield then it’s Jamie Carragher.”

Roy Hodgson

“He should be remembered as a loyal servant to Liverpool who gave everything he had, who maximised his potential to the fullest and who became one of Liverpool’s greatest ever legends.”

John Barnes

“It’s very difficult for top players to produce their level of performance for 10 or 12 years. Jamie was able to do that – so that’s great credit to him.”

Gary Gillespie

“Jamie reminded me a little bit of me. They wouldn’t have scored any goals against us.”

Tommy Smith