Jamie Carragher: No Ideal Candidate in England Squad to Replace Liverpool Star Steven Gerrard

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher believes there is no replacement available in the England squad for his former teammate and compatriot Steven Gerrard.

The 34-year-old midfielder announced his retirement from the England squad following a disappointing World Cup campaign that saw the Three Lions bow out in the Group stage.

The Reds skipper, who had 114 caps under his belt and netted 21 times, stated that he opted to leave the international fray in order to be able to give his best for Brendan Rodgers' side in the coming years.

Carragher backed Gerrard's decision in his column for Daily Mail while stressing that it will help him mentally. The former defender, who is now a pundit for Sky Sports, also insisted that the England boss has no 'stand-out candidate' to replace the Liverpool star in his squad.

"I think it's the fact Liverpool are back in Europe now and that schedule of games. At times he'll be playing two or three times a week because he's still vitally important to Liverpool," Carragher explained.

"He is also for England in some ways because there isn't a natural person you could see taking the role he has in terms of that holding role. There aren't many young players coming through in that role, but England will have to find someone."

"I think it is a difficult decision because I don't think there is a stand-out candidate at the moment. Stevie is obviously a great leader and loves being captain of Liverpool. He loved being captain of England; I think that was obvious to everyone and he had it at different times throughout his career."

"Under Roy Hodgson he was the England captain and I think you could see how much he loved doing that. I think it will have been a difficult decision for him to give that up."

"He's a captain who leads by example and performance and he gets respect because he's such a top player. People look up to him. He's shown throughout his career he's been able to cope with the demands of Liverpool and England," the 36-year-old former defender added.

Gerrard is among the England generation that has failed to qualify for a single semi-final in any major tournament and Carragher feels the midfielder will be deeply disappointed about it.

"There will be a lot of emotions for Stevie. I think he and a lot of the players of the so-called 'golden generation' will look back on their England careers with a few regrets or disappointments," Carragher told talkSPORT.

"For the calibre of players we had on those squads, especially under Sven-Goran Eriksson, we should have achieved more. We should have got closer to a trophy or a couple of semi-finals," he concluded.