Jamie Carragher disagrees with Rio Ferdinand over current England line-up vs 'Golden Generation'

Liverpool great Jamie Carragher had a surprisingly low-key international career. He retired with just 38 caps for England — and he disagrees with Rio Ferdinand over which of the current crop would have made it into the team alongside his 'Golden Generation' peers.

Carragher is almost uniquely qualified to discuss the difficulties of making it into that 'Golden Generation' side. He's openly admitted he never prioritized international football, but even so, it's odd that a player with 737 Liverpool appearances featured so little — and the sheer quality of the competition certainly played a part.

Indeed, Ferdinand was one of those boxing Carragher out, alongside the likes of John Terry and Sol Campbell. Further forward, there were greats like Steven Gerrard and Wayne Rooney, although the 'golden' moniker weighed heavily on a group that was never able to deliver silverware.

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Ferdinand was the first to propose his combined team, featuring members of the current side and the Golden Generation. He immediately made a change from the 2000s lineup, swapping out David James in favor of Jordan Pickford.

Kyle Walker then took the spot from Ferdinand's former teammate Gary Neville. But that was it in terms of changes, with the Manchester United great preferring the other nine members of the Golden Generation team to their modern-day alternatives.

His final XI was as follows: Pickford; Walker, Campbell, Terry, Cole; Beckham, Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes; Owen, Rooney.

Carragher was quick to weigh in with his own team on X. Despite the difficulties he had breaking into the Golden Generation, he has given far more credit to the existing England crop.

Concurring with the Pickford and Walker swaps in the back line, Carragher also removed Frank Lampard in favor of Declan Rice in midfield. David Beckham made way for Jude Bellingham, prompting a slight formation reshuffle, and Michael Owen dropped out to make room for Harry Kane.

Where Ferdinand's final team ended up with a 9-2 split in favor of the Golden Generation, Carragher was more even, giving the nod to five current players. Ferdinand did concede that the existing group would all make this hypothetical XI in the event that they win the Euros.

Liverpool.com says: Carragher's team looks more accurate here. While England has managed to avoid the label this time around, it is in another golden generation, with a number of hugely talented footballers.

Some of them haven't even made this conversation, not least Liverpool vice-captain Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is a generational talent. Ferdinand has perhaps been guilty of a little nostalgia.

That being said, Rice over Lampard is a particularly bold pick from Carragher. And Owen might not be thrilled about the snub from his old teammate!