England call was too strong for Carragher

Jamie Carragher has admitted he could not turn down the chance to play for England again.

Three years after announcing his retirement from the international scene, Carragher is back, attempting to be one of the 23 players Fabio Capello will rely on to bring the World Cup back to Blighty in July.

"This opportunity to try to get into the 23 has come up again now and was something I couldn't turn down," he said.

It was a staggering about-turn, which Carragher accepts he never thought would happen, especially given much-publicised comments in his autobiography highlighting how England's fortunes paled alongside those of his beloved Liverpool.

But, the 32-year-old freely accepts, with Liverpool's fortunes taking a nose-dive, and Capello making such a big impression since replacing Steve McClaren in December 2007, he started to look at the Three Lions in a whole new light.

"I made my decision a few years ago for different reasons," he added.

"Fabio Capello is one of the best managers, not just the England team have had, but in world football over the past 10 or 15 years.

"I was always asking Steven Gerrard what the manager was like when he came back from England duty. That was a massive reason behind it."