Jamie Carragher’s son can play for surprise international minnows after gaining citizenship

Jamie Carragher and his son, James, have both reportedly been granted Maltese citizenship.

Carragher senior played 38 times for England in a distinguished career that also saw him be a cornerstone of Premier League giants Liverpool for 17 years.

Now, The Times of Malta say Carragher was recently granted citizenship in Malta due to his grandfather and mother being Maltese.

His son James was also granted citizenship at the same time.

The 22-year-old currently plays for League One side Wigan Athletic, with the defender playing 19 times so far this season.

It also means that James will be eligible to play international football for Malta, if he chooses to do so.

The Malta Football Association confirmed that talks had taken place with the Carraghers.

President Bjorn Vassallo said: "We’ve been in talks with James and his father Jamie for the last few months now; he [James] is open to it, but we’re still working on it."

He added: "We will not shy from signing players internationally; everyone is doing it, so why not us?"

Malta have been handed a tough group for the World Cup 2026 qualifiers where they will face either Spain or the Netherlands, Poland, Finland, and Lithuania.

James Carragher recently scored his first professional goal last month when he scored the winner in a 1-0 victory over Bolton.

Dad Jamie recently opened up on his son's injury struggles as he looked to build his own path in the game.

He started out in Liverpool's academy before moving to Wigan at the age of 15.

Persistent knee injuries caused major problems for James that held back his development.

A loan to Oldham was cut short in 2022 after a knee injury that required surgery, while more problems occurred in 2023.

Jamie Carragher told The Overlap over his guilt that he never suffered from injury problems in his professional career.

"Twelve months ago I was in a dark place over my son's injuries," he admitted.

"I didn't get injuries. When I was at Liverpool I'd go in the treatment room and I'd see people on the bed, and I could never get this out of my head, I'd [think] they're faking it, they're not tough enough.

"Because I didn't get injured. I couldn't understand that people got injured... and then my own son went through it."

James is finally getting his chance at Wigan and could soon be set to make his international bow with Malta.