Having previously been rumoured to have lost his passion for Chelsea in light of Russia’s successful 2018 World Cup bid, Roman Abramovich has not only answered his accusers emphatically, but set the wheels in motion for one of the most frantic transfer-deadline days in history.
Chelsea’s record-breaking £50m acquisition of Fernando Torres may have left a gaping hole in the Anfield side’s frontline but, in an equally bold show of intent, Liverpool’s new owners wasted little time in making their own sensational signing, with the subsequent capture of Andy Carroll from Newcastle on a five and a half year deal, for a fee believed to be in the region of £35m plus add-ons.
The return of King Kenny, combined with NESV Principal Owner John Henry and Chairman Thomas Werner’s determination to re-establish the club as a major player in the Premier League has seen Liverpool making headlines for the right reasons this time, and the dire days and empty promises of Hicks and Gillett must feel like distant memories already for Liverpool fans.
The Statistics
To describe the first three seasons of Carroll’s career as tentative is something of an understatement. From the 2006/07 – 2008/09 season, he managed 3 goals in 22 games for Newcastle, with a short spell at Preston bringing just 1 goal from 11 games. Last season, however, with his home town team dropping down a division, Carroll became a first-team regular and finally found his feet. 39 games brought 17 goals as, under the stewardship of Chris Hughton, he helped fire the Geordies back into the Premier League in devastating fashion.
It’s doubtful whether the expectations were quite so high in his first full season in the top division but Carroll wasted no time in setting out his stall with a hat-trick in Newcastle’s first home game of the season against Aston Villa. Before succumbing to a thigh injury in late December, his consistency was second to none; from twenty appearances, Carroll scored 11 goals and made 6 assists, finding the net against the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Man City and confirming his prowess as a top-class Premier League forward.
Opinion…
Andy
“I don’t think this transfer is going to necessarily improve Carroll as a Fantasy asset -he was doing just fine at Newcastle- but the prospect of owning a cheap striker from Liverpool not named David N’Gog is very tempting all the same.
While £35m is a lot of money, £6m(ish) of my Fantasy Premier League bucks can be spent with far less burden on the conscience.”
The Prospects
While the circumstances surrounding Carroll’s exit from Newcastle remain fuzzy, his quality as a striker and a potential Fantasy asset are far from in doubt.
The most intriguing aspect of the transfer will be how Liverpool’s formation changes as a consequence. Roy Hodgson’s 4-4-2 was met with little praise round Anfield way, and it was noticeable that, upon replacing the ex-Fulham boss, Dalglish reverted to 4-2-3-1, with Torres as the lone striker.
Although their other big new signing Luis Suarez is also a proven goalscorer, the Uruguayan is just as capable of creating as he is finishing, meaning there’s a possibility he could play slightly behind Carroll, in a role similar to Kevin Nolan’s when Newcastle played Carroll up front alone.
These last two seasons, however, have seen Carroll thrive in a Newcastle system that always had four across the middle (either in 4-4-2 or 4-4-1-1) and with Liverpool lacking any natural wingers, it remains to be seen how Dalglish approaches the issue in order to accommodate the big hit man. Certainly, as Blackburn boss, Dalglish got the best out of Alan Shearer with a 4-4-2 formation.
Carroll has missed the last four league games with a thigh injury and, at present, it’s uncertain as to when he’ll be able to make his Liverpool debut. There’s little doubt that when he’s fit and raring to go, though, he will be just as frightening a proposition as he was at Newcastle. Fantasy Premier League (FPL) managers will recall that, of his 19 starts this season, Carroll registered 2 points or less on just 4 occasions. In addition to the above-mentioned goals and assists, he picked up 18 Bonus Points, with his physical presence clearly a real eye-catcher with the Bonus Judges. Right now you would imagine that only Steven Gerrard and the industry and invention of Raul Meireles will be his rivals for such Bonus returns in the Liverpool lineup – it will be interesting to see if Carroll’s output in this area declines as a result.
Currently nine points off fourth place, it remains to be seen whether Carroll’s goals can help Liverpool recover sufficiently enough to push for a Champions League place this season but there’s no denying that this transfer window has at least brought confirmation that the feel-good factor has returned down Anfield way.
