Speaking on The FA’s Developing Defenders course at St. George's Park, the former Liverpool and England defender highlighted the influx of foreign defenders and the lack of English players in the top teams as areas of concern.
“English defenders in the Premier League have got to be top level,” he explained.
“Some of the players that are coming in from abroad are some of the top players in world football.
"It makes it a great spectacle for us to watch but it makes it a lot more difficult for English players to get experience.”
The former centre-half, who won 38 caps for his country, continued: “In the past we talked about the ‘golden generation’ and maybe it was a silly tag and we didn’t achieve what we should have done, but we had a lot of players playing Champions League football and getting to finals.
"At the moment English players aren’t really getting the same experiences.”
Jamie Carragher represented England on 38 occasions
And the 36-year-old believes it is not the physical or technical attributes holding English defenders back at international and European level but rather more game understanding.
“It’s a bit of nous and tactical understanding. Some of our players still go out and play like it’s a league game. I think you have to adapt and play in different ways.”
Adapting to change is something the former Liverpool man cites as one of the reasons for his success in a 17-year one-club career, which began as a centre-forward.
“At 16, 17 I was a striker. I was a late developer physically, I didn’t have the pace or strength to play up front so I had to move deeper to make up for my lack of pace.
"So I ended up in central midfield. I didn’t play centre-back until I was probably 18.”
He continued: “I was small for a centre-back at just under six foot, so to play in that role that I always had to be ahead of the opposition in terms of my positioning and decision-making.
"If I got caught out of position I wouldn’t catch anyone and I couldn’t out jump many, so I had to find ways to compensate.”
Carragher, a Sky Sports analyser alongside another former England defender, Gary Neville, provided coaching candidates with an insight into a wide variety of defending issues on the opening day of the three-day course.
How modern fluid attacking formations have changed the way defenders need to operate, Rafa Benitez’s meticulous attention to detail and how AC Milan legend, Franco Baresi, was his defending idol were some of the topics covered.
"I could sit in a room with coaches and talk about the game all day"
Jamie Carragher
“3-5-2 was the system I started in twenty years at Liverpool and then it mostly disappeared for a decade. Now it’s starting to come back. Trends just come round,” explained Carragher.
“3-5-2 was successful at the World Cup because team’s weren’t used to playing against it and gave teams a different problem. Once teams had solved that problem you’ve got to give them a different problem. That’s football.”
Speaking with characteristic enthusiasm and detail throughout, it begged the question about his own future on the training ground or in the dugout.
“I wouldn’t say I’ve got a massive itch to become a coach or a manager at the moment. I love what I do with Sky. I love talking about football, I could sit in a room with coaches and talk about the game all day and all the new trends and styles of play.
“I think if I go on to do my coaching qualifications, which I’m sure I will, it’ll be as much for my knowledge of the game and learning new things.
“I enjoyed just being on this course [FA Developing Defenders] and listening to the discussion the tutors and the candidates were having about the World Cup and modern day defending.
"There’s always something to learn. I love being around football people and talking football.”
Jamie Carragher is latest former international to pass on his expertise on The FA’s new suite of positional specific coaching courses.
Former Anfield team-mate Michael Owen and Manchester United’s Ryan Giggs have also spoken on the Developing Forwards and Developing Midfielders courses this season.
To learn more about the FA’s Positional specific courses visit the FA Learning website.
