Carragher ready for mind games

Liverpool defender hopes to sustain title challenge

Last updated: 28th December 2008   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Carragher ready for mind games

Carragher: Keen on mind games

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Jamie Carragher is hoping that Liverpool will still be in contention for the title when the mind games start in the spring.

Liverpool currently lead the table after the club put together their best start to a Premier League season.

However, the Reds have yet to sustain a challenge for the title under Rafa Benitez as the club look for a first top-flight crown since 1990.

Carragher is disappointed to have never been involved in a title race in the past, but is optimistic Liverpool will be in the mix this season.

Great chance

"In my career, we've never been in contention around March or April," said Carragher on the club's official website. "The best teams pace themselves and get into the right position by then.

"When the mind games start, I want us to be in everyone's thoughts. It will tell us that we've been doing something right, and that we're in with a good shout of winning the Premier League.

"I love all that and it's always been disappointing that it's other teams that have been involved rather than us. We've always been outside the race watching and reading about it, but now we've a great chance to be in the thick of it.

"I've always felt the time to really get into the mix is when there are 10 games to go."

Torres blessing

Long-serving defender Carragher also believes it is a testament to the strength of the squad at Anfield that Liverpool are top, despite playing much of the season without Fernando Torres.

He added: "To have done as well as we have without Fernando Torres has also been a fantastic achievement. If you'd have said at the start of the season we'd be top on Christmas Day and Fernando would have missed so many games, no one would have believed that possible.

"It's a tribute to the players and to the manager for coping so well without him.

"When you take a player like Torres out of our side, or Cristiano Ronaldo out of United's, it inevitably has an impact. He's our most outstanding attacking player and if he'd been fit he'd have been worth possibly 10 more goals to us.

"I hope it turns out to be blessing because he probably needed a rest after Euro 2008. If he's fit and fresh for the rest of the season he'll add an extra dimension to our team."