No sooner had reports emerged that West Ham had agreed to sign Andy Carroll, speculation mounted that the Liverpool hitman turned down the chance to move to Upton Park.
Rumours of Andy Carroll’s departure from Anfield have been circulating since Liverpool decided to appoint Brendan Rodgers as their new manager because Carroll doesn’t really suit his style – and these murmuring only intensified when Rodgers swooped to sign Roma striker Fabio Borini.
Borini’s signing seemed to push Carroll further down the pecking order, and Rodgers even said he’d listen to offers for the £35m signing back in January 2011.
Recent developments have seen Newcastle have a loan bid rejected, but West Ham had their bid accepted – £2m loan fee with a £17m permanent transfer if they survived relegation this season. It seemed the like the perfect match – Sam Allardyce’s direct style of football coupled with Carroll’s aerial ability – but does Carroll see it that way?
Reports are now suggesting that Carroll has turned down the move to Upton Park to fight for his place under Rodgers. To me, it’s pretty clear that Rodgers doesn’t see Carroll as a key part of his plans in the near future. I personally think he’s wrong to cast Carroll aside so quickly, because Carroll proved at Euro 2012 what he can do and even at the end of last season, Carroll showed a marked improvement in his performances.
Whilst I hope Carroll proves Rodgers wrong and scores goals for Liverpool, it doesn’t seem that Carroll will be given his chance. Now, he’s turned down West Ham but what would happen if Newcastle returned with a better offer? Carroll returning to home could be the trigger for his return to form – and possibly haunting Rodgers.
“We don’t really learn anything from sending players to the Championship for a second time.”
