When Liverpool signed Newcastle striker Andy Carroll for £35 million back in January, Reds fans were hailing the signature of one of the brightest talents in English football. Now fans are joining in with ‘what a waste of money chants’ by Tottenham fans at White Hart Lane. So how long will it be until Carroll wishes he’d never left Newcastle? This is what one Liverpool fan thinks of Newcastle’s former number nine…
You would think that any player with a £35million price tag is a certain starter. For the latter part of the 2010-2011 season, Carroll was blighted by injury in a red shirt, limiting him to sporadic appearances. Fast forward to this month and Carroll has come through a pre-season campaign unscathed and is fully fit. But it’s not been all plain sailing.
In the first league match of the season, Luis Suarez ran rings around the Sunderland defence before understandably tiring after a summer of brilliance for Uruguay at the Copa America. Carroll was unable to provide the same spark as his strike partner and as Suarez became less effective, Liverpool’s threat diminished.
The following league game saw Carroll start as a lone striker against Arsenal, but yet again it was the introduction of Suarez that changed the game – forcing a mistake for the first goal and scoring the second.
[ad_pod id=’unruly-video’ align=’right’]
Liverpool’s best performance of the season came in the most recent league game against Bolton. Dalglish decided to leave Andy Carroll on the bench, preferring a two-pronged attack of Luis Suarez and Dirk Kuyt – a partnership which worked brilliantly in the second half of the 2010-2011 season.
Without Andy Carroll on the pitch, the team didn’t rely on the easy option of hitting it long to the target man and were encouraged instead into playing more patiently.
When Carroll entered the game, with the scoreline already at 3-0, he looked sluggish. On one such occasion, Stewart Downing – who had yet another superb game – whipped in a delightful cross for the Geordie to attack, but he was caught on his heels and got nowhere near the ball.
In the absence of Luis Suarez’s darting runs, Liverpool suddenly looked a more one-dimensional and predictable team.
By all means, Andy Carroll is an excellent centre-forward. He will score many goals for Liverpool this season and in seasons to come, but from the evidence seen thus far, a Kuyt-Suarez strike pairing looks far more potent.
In a poll of over 1,000 Liverpool fans on OurKop.com, only 1/5 of supporters would have Andy Carroll in their starting eleven. He’s clearly not appreciated an Anfield, so are his days at Liverpool numbered and would you accept him back at Newcastle?
Written by Kristian Johnson
NothingButNewcastle.com is looking for writers. If you love the Toon get in touch at nothingbutnewcastle@snack-media.com
anything <£20m i would gladly say OK give him another go. As mentioned previously he would give us a different option and a target for our wide players. Wehn he left it was obvious he would struggle at Liverpool as they do not play a game which has wide men as the main final ball.
I would rather see someone with pace and guile than another 'bigun'; we have those in abundance, and ultimately we should only ever take AC back if at least one (Shola please) goes out the door.
I would take him back like without a second thought. Some fans have double standards and give carroll a hard time. The truth is even if a mackem offered them double their wages, never mind triple they would jump to it like a shot.
Are you serious? Double my wages or be number nine for the toon? Money wouldn’t ever come into it mate. And go to the MACKEMS for double my wages? Give your head a shake you moron.
I hope Carroll cries himself to sleep on his hammock made of tenners wearing his old number nine toon top that I would play in for free if I had the chance.