The most shocking aspect of the most recent transfer deadline day was undoubtedly Andy Carroll’s big money move to Liverpool for a fee in the region of £35m from Newcastle. The price tag may be somewhat inflated due to the nature of his passport, but does it point towards a significant investment in Carroll’s future potential – which begs the question, what sort of player do Liverpool expect Andy Carroll to become? For this move would appear to have more to it than meets the eye.
The rumour doing the rounds recently is that while Carroll may be out for a few more weeks yet with a hamstring injury, he is set to be put to work on building his already muscular build in preparation for next season with a strict weight training programme to enhance his physique.
It was telling that in the press conference that unveiled Carroll alongside new strike partner Luis Suarez, that interim manager Kenny Dalglish opined that: “It may be a few weeks, but we never signed him for a few weeks, we signed him for 5 and a half years.” while also declaring that Carroll wouldn’t be rushed back until he was 100 per cent ready.
Carroll is already a physical beast as it is. At 6ft 3 inches tall, the native Geordie already cuts an imposing and intimidating figure on the pitch, but there is still room for improvement.
We’ve already seen him bully the likes of Richard Dunne and James Collins in Newcastle’s unexpected 6-0 drubbing of Aston Villa at the beginning of the season. He has the potential to bully even the biggest centre half. With the new strength training set to be put in place, Carroll is expected to be put on a strict weights programme by the Anfield conditioning team, with the aim of turning him into even more of a threat than he is already.
The Anfield faithful have seen time and time again the threat imposed by Didier Drogba when in his pomp, as the Chelsea front man has consistently given the likes of Carragher, Hyypia et al a torrid time due to his strength, size, pace and power.
The most coveted striking prospect around Europe at the moment is Romelu Lukaku, the Anderlecht sensation that’s dominated the Belgium league in the past 18 months. He’s already being courted by a host of Europe’s top clubs, and the player’s sheer physicality marks him out as a special talent.
The Sports Science team also plan to educate Carroll on the problems that regular drinking can have on an athlete’s body. The feeling at Newcastle always persisted that as long as he was delivering the goods on match day, then away from the pitch he could do what he wanted. Carroll himself even conceded that although the £35m price tag will be difficult to live up to, that he didn’t plan to change his ways too much with concerns to having the odd pint. Refreshingly honest it may be, but it’s not the way the game has gone over the past decade or so.
The choice ultimately remains with Carroll. It’s well known that he didn’t want to leave Newcastle and his move to Liverpool was assured only on Mike Ashley’s say so. It’s up to him now whether he wants to truly reach the pinnacle of the game.
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Leaving the bubble of Newcastle could help the player in the long-run, and although Carroll personally would have preferred to stay, at Liverpool, under a new regime, he has the chance to become one of the most feared marksmen in Europe and a regular for England.
A front two of Rooney and Carroll is a salivating prospect that, in theory, should bring out the best in both of them. Liverpool have lacked a presence up top capable of bringing others into play since Emile Heskey was at the club under the Gerard Houllier era. Heskey’s time at Liverpool also coincided with the club’s last genuine strike partnership, which he shared with the lethal Michael Owen and to great success.
Torres for all of his gifts and strength, was less consistent at holding the ball up, and his success in this area was more or less down to his mood. Berbatov for Manchester United, Chamakh for Arsenal and Drogba for Chelsea and most recently Man City’s purchase of Edin Dzeko have all shown that to dine at the Premier League’s top table, a physical presence is needed up top.
The players listed above all have different styles about bringing others into play, but with a new sense of purpose at the club and a shift to a more attacking brand of football, a move for Carroll makes sense. If they can mould him into a fearsome dominant centre forward, whose sheer power can make up for his lack of technical gifts, then £35m won’t start to look like such an inflated fee in the years to come.
It looks as if Liverpool are shifting away from their current style of play, a lone figure up top, to a more attacking mindset. Dalglish has had great success with strike partnerships over the years, but nearly all of Dalglish’s teams have relied upon a consistent stream of goals from all over the midfield too.
The shift in style should ensure that the burden isn’t solely placed on just one or two individuals anymore, a move that Liverpool have needed to make for some time now with the lack of a plan B palpable at times over the last few seasons.
He’s been signed with the aim of being the focal point of the new Liverpool side and I see him, when he comes into the side, being integral to the team’s future shape and style of play.
Due to the nature of the fee, a lot will be expected of Carroll, and rightly so. He’ll be expected to consistently deliver goals each season, but it appears as if Liverpool have already set their sights on squeezing just that little bit more out of Carroll’s enormous potential than a 20 goals a season striker. Carroll‘s success or failure at Liverpool could end up being determined as much by his work off the ball than on it.
The article was written by James McManus for FootballFancast.com. Make sure to check out the latest news, blogs and podcasts at FFC – ed.
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ffs at least acknowledge the source, copied from another journo work from three days ago
the fool didn’t even edit it, mentioning Rooney in the Liverpool front two
do you really think that is what he means? when in the previous sentence carroll is mentioned as a potential england regular. or maybe you are just being pedantic because it is hard to believe anybody could be that stupid.