Andrew Thomas Carroll, popularly known as Big Andy was born in Gateshead, in the year 1989, January 6th , heighten 6’3”, aged 22. A sexy looking footballer, but really deadly when fit and surrounded by right players.
The big Geordie is to become a feared striker in the world of football in England and in Europe
I started following him during his New Castle United days, particularly against Liverpool FC. His 2 deadly goals against Liverpool deflated Reina twice in that fixture. Liverpool lost to them. His left foot is his power, his tool on the pitch. He is very proud of it; that is the gift he’s got. Life was pretty much easy for him at Saint James Park, as he was still nurturing himself up for bigger things. Basically, no pressure on him. Even though he had his issues regarding his personal life style, that still did not stop him doing what he knows best and improving week in week out. Although that affected a him little. Along with that was injuries (knee injuries) that is peculiar to footballers.
When he is fit, he can be deadly and unstoppable. The team played to his tempo to bring out the best in him. We saw the real Andy Carroll. In other words the team was built around him since he was the goal poacher. We saw services from both the wings and from the midfield. Joey Barton is one notable player that helped him a lot. Having shown plenty of talent and potentials in himself the time now came when bigger clubs came with their monies. Incidentally, Liverpool F.C. came calling in January transfer window.
But the question is: Was Andy Carroll really ready for the move? Is the player ready to fill Torres’ scoring boots? Is he ready for 15-20 goals this season; a season that the club ‘must’ make top 4?
Here is where I think Andy Carroll became a victim of circumstance. Sure, it is the joy of every big fish to swim in a bigger pool when the right time comes, otherwise it would get eaten up by predators. Like a mother bird, it keeps nurturing the little fledglings until they learn how to fly and fly with safety. New Castle United is where Big Andy started. His move in my opinion came abruptly; it came at the wrong time for him as he was not prepared. True, it becomes really difficult when a club of Liverpool stature come calling for you. First you consider its height, the history, tradition and cultural heritage, the famous Anfield stadium where the best fans exist in English football, where players no matter their background are adored. All these factors could weaken your hands. But then, for a player to move, it has to come from within him, it has to be a natural decision, the readiness must be there. Granted, there are players who may have being contemplating a move, but have not fully decided and yet the abrupt calling came and they moved. In his case, I think he was not fully prepared, perhaps he never contemplated moving during the summer transfer window, at the same time the aforementioned factors could have weakened Carrol’s hands. And if he did, he may have wanted it at the earliest to allow him prepare his move. Unfortunately, the owner made the most of his move. The owner used him as a pawn to enrich himself. A player that is currently not worth his price tag is being forced to move, but should worth every penny spent on him in the next coming season and seasons.
Since then, the 35m pounce price tag has been a weight too much on him to absolve, adding also his injury woes. This has affected his growth, his confidence and passion. He has really missed oldies, especially seeing his former club flying high in the league table. He can be compared or seen as a horse being driven to a river or stream to drink water when it is actually not thirsty, even though the water would be beneficial to it. But the fact remains it does not feel thirsty at that moment.
Well, regardless of whatever might be his present situation, it is definitely momentary. Carroll’s move to Liverpool WOULD YIELD BENEFITS both to himself and the club in the long term if he finds himself in the right environment. Of course, Kenny should not be blamed for signing him as the purchase is an astute one, though the long term one. He earns 70k a week, but many especially the media, when it comes to LFC would not talk about the weekly wages but rather would doggedly dwell on the sign on fee. Where I would point a finger at Kenny is failing to get the right players to bring out the best in him.
This is what I mean; when Liverpool lost their prolific goal scorer in the person of Torres at the eleventh hour of the January transfer window Kenny he chose to go for big Andy, the summer transfer window was the right period he should have signed the round pegs for the round holes and not the opposite. Signing Henderson as a right winger has really affected both Andy and Henderson. Downing has been really disappointing to everyone of us. Before the summer transfer window when all of us were expecting massive changes, though there were in terms of wage cuts and cutting down dead woods; we saw how effective Maxi was scoring hat trick in quick succession, Kuyt is another player that was very effective as a striker and from the right wing. These are experienced players that brings something nice and different to the team in the absence of what you really want/needed, but at the moment been marginalized. The usefulness of Dirk Kuyt cannot be over emphasized, should Liverpool chooses to sell him a player like Ezekiel Lavezzi would be the right replacement for him. These players also eased off pressure on Carroll. Today, the case is different. Big Andy is suffering from ill services. He’s being pushed to do what he cannot do at the moment. One could argue that he has a poor ball control, running with the ball, but we could not argue the sweet way he scores his goal. He is that direct goal scorer not in the mould of Torres or Suarez; meaning you have to play the ball into my deadly left foot. As time passes, he would be improving his frailties on the pitch.
If Kenny really wants us to see the real Big Andy regardless of his life style, he must take it easy on him, he must make him feel relaxed, feel at home, he needs to be nurtured in Liverpool way as he is used to his former place. In that vein, a striker has to be signed in the January window. In the meantime Kuyt, Maxi and Bellamy should be involved. If Carroll is pushed too much, he may get frustrated to want to leave. THAT BOY IS A BIG GEM. It is only Kenny that has that responsibility. It is him that would change it. Taking into cognizance he is only 22, he just not ready for what most fans wants and expects of him. But that thing is there in him. Mario Balotelli is living example of what I am talking about. When he was with Milan, he was that bad boy at that age of 22, the talent was there and is there, so much that City could splash out 25m pounce for his services…brother please it’s not easy…, but today he is getting better and more interesting. The same is what I see happening in Big Andy Carroll. For now, he is a victim of circumstance until the situations gets better.
The above is purely my opinion not anyone else’.
Comments appreciated.
You can follow me on twitter : @Kelvin_atlast
I’ve never read such a bullshit article?! Signing Carroll was “astute”?! It’s was the total opposite of astute. It was panic buying of the worst order. We got held to ransom by Mike Ashley, who then named a crazy fantasy price and probably fell off his chair when we agreed to pay it. And as for Carroll deciding to make the move, Ashley practically held a gun to Carroll’s head telling him he was going whether he liked it or not!
Blaming or other players for lack of service and Carroll’s 2nd touch being a tackle is deluded too, what planet are you on?! ‘If we aren’t careful Carroll may want to leave’, that’s another joke, we’re stuck with him as no one else would be prepared to give us any price over £5m so we aren’t going to take a hit that big, we persevered with Heskey for years after a big money move, we wasted £20m on Aquilani, we can’t just throw money away!
And quoting Balotelli in the same article as Carroll? They ain’t in the same league and Balotelli is only 21 now so how you’ve made up they signed him at 22yrs old same as Carroll I don’t know?!
I have to agree with the previous comment. For me, no matter how good Andy Carroll may become for Liverpool, was and will remain a panic buy at and outrageously ridiculously unbelievably high price. We were lucky to get well over the odds for Torres which is the only way this rip off can be mitigated.
Yes, Carroll was a panic buy. But, then, the circumstances that Torres was leaving in, any buy would have been a panic buy.
Panic Buy of the worst order , never seen ny1 buy an injured player in such circumstances
good article. I am 100percent behind andy,an really feel for him at times. i admit,missing his sitter last game ‘frustrated’ me, because he’d been playing so well and a miss like that put him back at square one. saying that,torres did the same last week,and not for the first time (er hem,utd game). so it happens to the everyone. my biggest gripe though,is the differance is,looking from the outside at least (an i know a few chelsea fans),is that chelsea fans are like “never mind…next time son”,where as andy gets gunned down.
now im not picking a fight with my own, i just feel crushed reading some of the stuff writen about him,when what he needs is some love.
Andy has his own kop song now,which against my above argument,i dont think he’s earned yet. no nastyness meant by that,its just my heads vision of what they are about,and that wont stop me when at games.
But if he has one use it! sing for him till he hears you. when he scores we sing, when he misses sing even louder.
Andys problem is his confidence,and if he knows that when he wears a liver bird on his chest, kopites carry him through thik and thin, the reason lfc fans are reveared across the world,his confidence will sky rocket!
its as much up to us as it is him.
Good article. Downing was brought in for Carrol. I have loads of time for Carrol. He keeps his mouth shut and puts his head down and gets on with it. This is a team player not a premadona like Torres. He is setting an example for the long term.
Also I completely agree with your view on Kuyt and Maxi. We need their experience at this moment.
In KK we trust
YNWA
dont seem to understand ur attacking of torres for nothing…dont look at the blue torres, and talk about the red one then compare him to any one. He was class
No comment on the article per se, but I just had a good look at Carroll’s videos again. When he played for the Geordies, he looked very comfortable and played with abandon. Of course, he was hungry too, but you can still see that hunger in him presently, however, he seems to be making a huge effort to contribute and that is preventing him from playing his natural game. When Kuyt lost his father and in Lucas’ first 2 seasons playing in the shadow of Masch and Alonso, they too failed to deliver, but there was no denying the tremendous effort they showed on the pitch. Downing too is trying extremely hard and Henderson is clearly trying to come to grips with playing on the flank and it is evident none of them have the same self belief we see in Adam, Suarez and Enrique.
Of the whole lot of Kenny’s signings, Adam is probably the least gifted footballer, and he’s doing quite well so far, probably because he feels he deserves to play for us and plays like he does. Enrique is just so focused, and Suarez just wants to do it his way. Henderson has yet to believe he deserves to start, and so we don’t see him stamping his identity on the pitch yet. Carroll and Downing seem to be more preoccupied with trying their best, but the problem is that for as long as they are trying, they will never be at their best. That said, we’ve seen how Kuyt and Lucas have turned it around. When Kuyt was redeployed as a winger, he rediscovered his scoring touch. When Masch left and Lucas became our most senior available midfielder with no one to try to copy, he played his own game and consequently just kept getting better. Perhaps Carroll and Downing ought to swap positions for a few games to take the pressure off, and then we’ll see what John Henry paid for.
i wonder why Bellamy is not played alongside Suarez.
The manager needs to think of other options like Maxi,Coates and Aurelio.
Carroll is still a gamble to me.
more to that Henderson is a central attacking midfielder for christ sake.
why gamble him. i think we have lyk 3 players who can play the right wing better.
Pliz kenny Coates can play very well alongside Agger.