Rio Ferdinand has hit back at Jamie Carragher comment’s ‘Afcon is not a major tournament.’
Ferdinand clapped back after Carragher suggested on Monday that AFCON could impact Mohamed Salah’s chances for the Ballon d’Or, claiming that the tournament might not be viewed as ‘major’ by those casting votes, meaning talents from less heralded football nations might need to lean heavily on club success.
Ferdinand was quick to respond to Carragher’s remarks, acknowledging while some might concur, he considered that view ‘ignorant’. On his YouTube channel, Ferdinand voiced his perspective: “That comment is representative of the majority of people out there, I think it’s an ignorant thought process.
“If you go to Didier Drogba, [Samuel] Eto’o, [Riyad] Mahrez, Salah now, they’ll say, ‘we have to win this’ yes it doesn’t get backed like the Euros investment wise, but that doesn’t mean you have to devalue it, it’s a continent of huge power that contributes to European football massively.
“It should be respected more than it is. I understand what Jamie’s saying but I don’t agree with it, that’s a majority view and it’s not right. What Jamie’s saying, and he’s right, if Salah won AFCON, it would have no bearing on anyone’s voting on the Ballon d’Or and that’s wrong, that was one of the parts he was arguing about.”
Ferdinand shared a clip of the video on Instagram and Carragher replied: “I didn’t say that you clown, stop playing to the gallery like you always do.” In response, Ferdinand said: “You’ve had a bad couple a weeks… [Myles] Lewis Skelly and Pep [Guardiola]”