Castaway Carroll heads south for West Ham loan
ENGLAND striker Andy Carroll last night joined West Ham on loan from Liverpool after finally accepting his status as Anfield’s unwanted man.
Since Brendan Rodgers’s appointment as manager, the striker’s future has been the subject of considerable doubt but despite his initial desire to remain and justify Liverpool’s £35m outlay, Carroll’s intentions finally changed with tonight’s 11pm transfer deadline looming.
“It’s great to be here at West Ham and all signed up,” Carroll said. ”I just can’t wait to get started now.
“I want to be playing games and obviously hoping to score some goals. I know the manager well and some of the lads, so it is nice for me to come to a place where I know people.
“I know [West Ham manager] Sam [Allardyce] from Newcastle and he was a massive reason for me coming. When I worked with him at Newcastle it was great so it was a no-brainer.”
The reality remains that Carroll had hoped to stay at Liverpool or return to hometown club Newcastle yet though earlier this month West Ham appeared to have abandoned their attempts to sign the striker, they returned to agree a £1m fee for his season’s services and will pay the full sum of his £5m salary.
Carroll has consistently failed to impress since signing for Liverpool from Newcastle in 2011 but in moving to West Ham – where there is no commitment to a permanent deal at the season’s end – he will work with a manager whose preference is for the direct style of play to which the striker is so suited, something Allardyce already acknowledges.
“I think for all parties this is a great signing,” he said. “Andy is an all-round footballer, but because he is 6ft 3in and one of his strengths is his aerial power, everybody dismisses the ability he possesses on the floor.”
Rodgers has already begun to implement the high-intensity, possession football that brought such success at Swansea and even before the £10m arrival of Italy striker Fabio Borini it was clear that Carroll’s strengths would be of greater use elsewhere, though his exit is unlikely to be the last from Liverpool before tonight’s deadline.
Everton and Stoke both retain an interest in Charlie Adam and Jay Spearing is also likely to leave on loan.