How dare you call me a bottler, says Carra

Carragher was goaded by outspoken comments from talkSPORT presenter Adrian Durham, who called the Liverpool defender 'a bottler' for withdrawing from England duty instead of staying to fight for a place under Steve McClaren.

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"Don't ever call me a bottler on radio with all those thousands of people listening," said a furious Carragher, before challenging Durham to come to Merseyside and repeat his accusation face-to-face.

"There's that many people McClaren has played ahead of me. They are younger than me, they are all going to improve and maybe I won't at my age. He played Ledley King, who is a top player but he's been injured all season. So how would you feel in my situation? What would you do? When John Terry was out, Jonathan Woodgate played.

"I'm 29, I've been doing it for eight years and obviously I haven't proved it enough so it's not going to change now is it? It's not like I've just got in the squad and jumped out.

"I've had the stomach to fight for my place for the last eight years. All I can do is play as well as I can for Liverpool. I've never really played centre-half for England and, to be honest, I've never really played that well for England because I've played a lot of the time at full-back.

"But at centre-half, I don't think I've really played as much as maybe I deserved. But that's opinions, that's the manager's choice and, if he's chosen people ahead of me, then I don't think anyone can really complain if I would rather concentrate and save myself for Liverpool games."

Carragher dismissed comparisons with Alan Shearer and Paul Scholes, who both quit the international scene early to further their club careers, and with David Beckham.

He said: "There's a difference. I'm only a squad player with the England team so I'm sure the England team are missing Paul Scholes and Alan Shearer a lot more than they're missing Jamie Carragher.

"David Beckham was the captain, he was a regular. The manager said the door was always open and it was, because he came back."

Reiterating comments he had made in a slightly calmer mood yesterday, Carragher admitted the door may yet be open for him as well.

He stopped short of announcing his retirement by admitting it is not impossible he could return - but only in 'an absolute emergency'.

His frustration dates back to the Sven Goran Eriksson era. But McClaren can hardly consider himself blameless after a disillusioned Carragher revealed that being overlooked against Estonia last month when King and Wes Brown deputised for Gary Neville and Rio Ferdinand was the final straw.

He said: "At the moment it's not 100 per cent official because I've still got to speak to the manager before the next game, but it's looking like that.

"If there was a major injury crisis and the four centre-halves who he picks ahead of me are injured and he's desperate then of course I would, yes.

"I've spoken to the manager a couple of times and he still wants me to apply for the squad. I'll speak to him before the Germany game in August. But I told him my feelings and that I didn't think they would change."