Andy Hunter‏@AHunterGuardian·12 mins BR on Andy Carroll - "wasn't let go because he wasn't good enough. One of best in Europe in role he plays." Finance one factor, he adds.
Hunter is slicing it a bit thin. If Carroll's role is the imposing no. 9 role, then he should have Drogba-like excavatory-type technical attributes to complement his initial aeral and hold-up threat. If not so, I could make a role Charlie Adam is one of the best in Europe at: shooting from the centre of the opposition's half. Or Valencia: raiding the outside right flank before his crossing f**ks it up.
I saw another article awhile back how Rodgers had to sell Carroll to get the best out of Suarez. I think that was a good decision.
I think its more a case of Rodgers trying to defuse the situation before we play them. We all know it was because it wasn't good enough and Rodgers didn't rate him.
I said that at the time. Carroll didn't fit so had to go. Doesn't matter what we paid for him, we couldn't have a valuable asset like Andy sat on the bench when the team needed investment. Loan was crazy though.
Have we not beaten Newcastle when Andy Carroll was in their team?. We are going to respect Wet Ham, but we're not going to be intimidated.
No. We lost 3-1 and Carroll bullied our defence. Our manager was Roy Hodgson though, which explains most, if not all, of that.
Andy Carroll is as crucial to West Ham as Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge are for Liverpool We're looking forward to Sunday’s match against Liverpool with relish. They’re the form team in the Premier League with the best strike partnership in Daniel Sturridge and Luis Suarez. When you have one striker in peak form you thank your lucky stars and when you have two, as Brendan Rodgers has, you’re in dreamland. It’s almost as if Liverpool’s two front men are having a personal battle —“you score one and I’ll try and get two”. It is great competition and it looks like the two of them are getting on well together. That perhaps wasn’t the case earlier in the partnership when whoever was asked to play wide sometimes seemed to have a bit of a sulk. Now, though, both are playing out of their skins and as a partnership, pose the biggest threat in the Premier League — bigger than at Manchester City where Alvaro Negredo has lost a little form and Sergio Aguero has had injury problems. As important as Sturridge and Suarez are for Liverpool, so is Andy Carroll to us. It will be the first time he’s faced his former club and he will be looking forward to it. He may not be 100 per cent back to his best yet but he is getting better all the time and just think where we would be if he had been fit all season. My belief is that if Andy played a full season he would score 15 goals for us. He has the supply, the crosses going into the box and, remember, he’s not only lethal with his heading, he can score on the deck as well. Add to that his influence on others, such as Kevin Nolan — who would have scored more — and I believe we would have been close to a European qualifying spot by now. Liverpool, though, are in with a definite shout of the title and I would like to see them do it because they have been the surprise package this season. They’ve taken full advantage of not being involved in European competition and in Brendan and Luis, they have the outstanding candidates for manager and player of the year respectively. The secret now is to finish it off and they have a great opportunity. For me and because of the position they’re in, there will be scant satisfaction for Liverpool if they finish second, particularly as they have Manchester City and Chelsea to play yet. Who, for example, expected Jose Mourinho’s team to draw at home to us and lose at Aston Villa and then Crystal Palace? Chelsea would have been anticipating nine points — seven minimum — from those three games. Instead they earned just one. Jose has the reputation for putting pressure on his rivals so they buckle under the pressure. This time, though, it’s been Jose and Chelsea’s turn to throw it away. On Sunday, we expect Liverpool to start the game at a high tempo, as they have done this season. To be honest, a lot of teams try and do that and back in 1969, I was taught to press the ball as high up the pitch as you can from the first whistle. Pep Guardiola took it to another level at Barcelona but we did it first and foreign coaches learned from us. Our players will certainly be warned about the danger of getting caught on the ball before Sunday’s game because, if they still let it happen, we will more than likely lose. If they don’t let it happen, it gives us a chance of further extending our great run. Sam Allardyce has donated the fee for this column to a charity of his choice. During our darkest moments, Kevin was the perfect captain There was a huge sense of satisfaction and, yes, relief following our win at Sunderland on Monday which effectively, if not mathematically, ensured our survival in the Premier League. The victory made it six wins from our last nine games — our best run since we have been back in the top flight. With that in mind, I want the players to get the credit they deserve. Two points per game over what is almost a quarter of the season is massive and should not be under-valued. The credit due to these players should be equal to the criticism they received when things were not going as well earlier in the season. It’s a great achievement by this squad to ensure we are well away from that relegation zone which threatened us back in December and January. Hopefully, we can keep this going, put more points on the board and continue this run. Crucially, even in the dark times a few months back — and they were dark, believe me — the players stuck together. Again, credit should go to all of them but particularly the captain, Kevin Nolan. Leading man: Kevin Nolan did not let his role as captain affect his performances Leading man: Kevin Nolan did not let his role as captain affect his performances If I’m honest, I’m not so sure there are that many good captains about anymore. It is a big responsibility and you have to try and continue to deliver your game despite the extra load you have taken on. We have different nationalities among the squad but they have a good relationship with each other and that is not an easy thing to develop. Of course, not everyone is going to get on brilliantly but they have come together, stayed together and it is the captain who is largely responsible for that, supported by other senior members of the squad. We said, during the bad times, that we would come through it, if we all stayed together — and we have. The difficulty was the outside environment was hostile. If we had put this run together at the start of the season, things would have been so much more positive. As I’ve said before, it’s all about how you start the season because if you begin well — even if you hit problems down the line — it keeps all the criticism away from you. http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/foo...niel-sturridge-are-for-liverpool-9237667.html
Nervous as **** about this one. But West Ham's defensive record is worth a little study/analysis. The only time they have had back-to-back wins this season was in February when they won 4 on the trot! But since the beginning of March they've gone L-W-L-L-W i.e. back to inconsistency They haven't drawn a match sine Jan 29th Make of that what you will
West Ham has lost at home to ALL TOP 10 teams they have played except for So'ton (beat them 3-1 in a weird game which Soton controlled) and Spurs (not played them home yet). West Ham United 1-3 Arsenal West Ham United 0-3 Chelsea West Ham United 1-3 Manchester City West Ham United 2-3 Everton West Ham United 0-2 Manchester United West Ham United 1-3 Newcastle United West Ham United 0-1 Stoke City So, If we don't win it, we'd fail where a top 7 team hasn't this season. Which makes me think, we'll win it. Because we do play like a top team!
This game is putting unnecessary pressure on Andy Carroll: he is likely to be overzealous and make mistakes.
Have faith. Do you know that since losing to stoke on Boxing Day 2012 we have only lost 8 of 51 premiership matches. That's a fantastic record. Some are getting worried about Carroll but if you watched his performance against manure recently then there is little to worry about. I know he scored against Sunderland but it was Sunderland! What top teams has he scored against. It will be a tough game and think we will go back to a diamond formation but we must try and stop,crosses into the box, something we are not great at.
Don't get me wrong, I've got faith in abundance, but it still doesn't stop this sense of foreboding with every game that comes our way. Every week we edge a little closer to the dream. The fact that it's in our own hands doesn't help one bit, 'cos only we can **** it up now. but what a ride this season has been. I'll not forget this one, no matter what the final outcome
Referee: A Taylor This season :G17, Y59, R2, 3.7 cards per game Friday 4 April 2014 14.16 BST Liverpool are yet to show signs of choking in their charge for the title but West Ham have the potential to make life awkward for them. Upton Park has been a graveyard for potential champions in the past and for Liverpool the fear must be that they will come unstuck at the hands of two of their former players, Andy Carroll and Stewart Downing. West Ham's defence, which has kept 13 clean sheets this season, poses another problem - but Brendan Rodgers has Luis Suárez. Jacob Steinberg
