Carragher ready to take chance

Champions Cup winner Jamie Carragher is hoping to make the breakthrough with England in their World Cup qualifier against Wales tomorrow.

Carragher has never managed the kind of performances in an England shirt which helped Liverpool lift the European Cup against Milan, and was notably part of England's 4-1 friendly rout in Denmark last month.

Widely expected to stand in for the injured John Terry alongside Rio Ferdinand in central defence in Cardiff, Carragher knows he can ill-afford another setback.

"There are certain players you know are going to play because they're that good - and I'm not one of them," Carragher said.

"I don't class myself as a big player for England. I get in the squad, so any chance to come on for England is a big thing, that's why I was so disappointed with the Denmark result."

Carragher had replaced Chel-sea's Terry at half-time with the score at 0-0 in Copenhagen, before coach Sven-Goran Eriksson made a raft of substitutions and England crumbled.

"To lose in that manner coming on at half-time was the worst thing about it," said Carragher, who has started only five of his 18 internationals.

"In my England career, even when I've had a little chance I've never really grabbed it with both hands, never really done as well as I have for Liverpool," the 27-year-old said.

"Hopefully, if I get a chance in the future that will change."

Carragher is confident of at least one change this weekend, after Eriksson talked his squad through a video of the debacle in Denmark.

"Even though it's a team game, individuals can let you down and people have to be told whether they could do different things to help the team," said the Merseysider.

"It was stopped and we all faced a bit of criticism. This is a massive game now. You will see a different performance and, hopefully, we will get the right result."

Gerrard eases injury worries

Steven Gerrard eased England's injury worries when he came through his first squad training session of the week yesterday.

The influential midfielder, who missed Liverpool's Super Cup win over CSKA Moscow last Friday with a calf problem, had been training separately with the team physio as England prepared for the weekend's World Cup qualifier against Wales.

The rest of the squad, who lost central defender John Terry to a knee injury on Tuesday, also completed the session at Arsenal's London Colney centre, an FA spokesman said.