By Andrew Beasley. Researched via LFCHistory.net. (Originally published August 2012)

On 8th of January 1997, Liverpool went out of the League Cup with a whimper, losing 2-1 away at Middlesbrough. That night, three weeks before his 19th birthday, Jamie Carragher made his Liverpool debut as a substitute, ensuring that a largely forgettable match has subsequently been added a sheen of significance within the illustrious history of Liverpool FC.

Fifteen-and-a-half years and another 699 appearances against 114 different teams later, the Bootle boy is now second in the all-time appearance list for England’s most successful football club behind Ian Callaghan, and top of the club’s European appearance list with an amazing 140 run-outs too. No-one at the Riverside on that chilly winter evening would have predicted that.

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