HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have filed a bankruptcy petition against Jamie Carragher over an outstanding tax debt, The Athletic reports, among others. The 48-year-old former Liverpool defender appeared in court on Wednesday after HMRC brought the case.
In England, a bankruptcy petition is used through the courts to recover unpaid sums. HMRC say they only start that process when other attempts to resolve a tax debt have failed.
Under privacy and confidentiality rules, the tax authority does not want to comment in detail on Carragher's personal situation. HMRC did, however, give The Athletic a general explanation of its approach in such cases.
"We take a supportive approach with customers who have tax debts and do everything we can to help people who engage with us get out of debt, for example by offering payment arrangements," a spokesperson said. "We only apply for bankruptcy as a last resort."
Sources familiar with the situation expect the matter to be resolved quickly, according to The Athletic. They do not expect it to end with Carragher actually being declared bankrupt.
Across his entire professional career, Carragher played only for Liverpool and spent 17 years in the first team of the English top club. The former defender made 737 official appearances for the Reds and also wore the England shirt 38 times.
At Liverpool, Carragher won the Champions League in 2005 and the UEFA Cup in 2001, among other honours. He also collected several other trophies before ending his playing career in 2013.
Since retiring, Carragher has become one of the best-known analysts in English football. He works for Sky Sports and the American network CBS and is also regularly heard on Stick to Football, the podcast of Gary Neville's production company The Overlap.