"That was not an opinion, that was a fact" - Jamie Carragher clarifies his AFCON comment as he continues talks about Mohamed Salah and Ballon d'Or

Jamie Carragher has stated that he was not trying to disrespect AFCON with his comments last month. The Liverpool legend added he was clumsy with his words, and did not wish to imply that the African competition is not a major tournament.

During an appearance on Sky Sports last month, Carragher stated that AFCON was a level below the FIFA World Cup in the eyes of those who vote for the Ballon d'Or.

After a wave of criticism for his comments, Carragher clarified his statement during on CBS' Champions League coverage. He added that it was not his opinion, but a fact that the voters would not consider winning AFCON at the same level as the World Cup or EUROs. He said (via talkSPORT):

“What I would say is you know me better than anyone on this show and I’ve got very strong opinions on the game, I love debate and that will never change. But what I never want to be described as as a pundit would be ignorant or disrespectful, so that was never my aim, whether that's to a club, a player, a country, a continent, an international tournament, whatever that may be. What I would say is, where I got it wrong was I was clumsy with my language, in describing AFCON as not a major tournament."

“I was trying to explain the merits of Mo Salah winning the Ballon d’Or and I felt, or feel, that not just AFCON, but the Asia Games or Gold Cup, not so much the Copa America, but there are five more competitions out there besides the World Cup that are for their continent a major tournament. Some of them don’t resonate with people who vote for the Ballon d’Or and that was not an opinion, that was a fact in terms of looking at who won the Ballon d’Or over the last 40 or 50 years.”

Jamie Carragher believes Mohamed Salah should become the first African player to win the Ballon d'Or since George Weah in 1995.

Mohamed Salah backed to win the Ballon d'Or despite Jamie Carragher's comments

In the wake of Jamie Carragher's original comments about Mohamed Salah's chances of winning the Ballon d'Or, many pundits have backed the Egyptian forward to claim the coveted award.

Salah has been in fine form his season and is the Reds' top scorer and top assist provider as they lead the Premier League table and finished on top of the UEFA Champions League league phase.

Rio Ferdinand has come out in full support of Salah and has claimed that the Liverpool star is the only one in the race this season. Arne Slot has also claimed that the Egyptian is leading, but believes the chances will improve if the club wins silverware.

Jamie O'Hara has also backed the Liverpool star after comments from Jamie Carragher. Ahmed Hassan also slammed the Reds legend and stated that the Egyptian was not going to be stopped by anyone this season.