Andy Carroll - Best Striker in the World

[kris90210]

Hes not worth £35 million no doubt about that, however he isnt the "worst buy in LFC history" etc.....

I'm old enough to remember us shelling out a fortune for Paul Stewart

However we tried for a number of other players at that time (Llorente for one) and were knocked back so we had to jump in

That said despite my belief he aint worth £35 million I dont think hes completely crap either - as many on here are claiming

Thats the problem with many posters on this forum its either black or white there is no considered middle ground to their views

Carroll could quite easily bang in a couple of goals in his next few games and I guarantee some of those criticising him would turn round and say hes a value member of the team

Thing is, like I said, this is the minority. I think most of us who are critical of Carroll feel that he's been dreadful so far, but he obviously has massive potential... every genuine LFC fan wants him to come good.

[G]

IMO You can only judge the true value of a transfer fee at the end of a players time at a club.

In no way would I write him off yet, time is on his side but for me he doesn't deserve a starting berth at the moment. There's also the problem of how you get him to improve without giving him game time which is why Kenny plays him in some games but not all.

It's obvious at the moment that we are a far better unit with kuyt, maxi and Bellamy working around Suarez than we are with Suarez and Kuyt/Downing /Bellamy working around Carroll and that should be how we play while its working

[~LFCHistory~]

Thing is, like I said, this is the minority. I think most of us who are critical of Carroll feel that he's been dreadful so far, but he obviously has massive potential... every genuine LFC fan wants him to come good.

Disagree with that. All this talk of the potential he has is based on an impressive 4 months with Newcastle this time last year. That is all. Before and after that spell he has shown nothing to suggest he's a top class striker.

My feeling on Carroll is that if he had stayed at Newcastle or gone to a club with lower expectations like for instance Aston Villa or Stoke he would probably be playing well and scoring a respectable number of goals.
Liverpool FC is a completely different propsition unfortunately. IMO he just dosen't fit in here or suit our style of play, I'm not slating him because I think he is a decent player who would do well at a smaller club, but that's all he is - decent. Not good enough for us.

[danperkins]

Hypocrit alert! Coming from possibly the most opinionated poster on the site... Please don't pretend you're some superfan who never criticises anyone.

Carroll has been absolutely shocking since he's arrived, and there's nothing wrong with expressing that opinion. Obviously everyone wants him to improve, and we continue to support him.

[kris90210]

IMO You can only judge the true value of a transfer fee at the end of a players time at a club.
In no way would I write him off yet, time is on his side but for me he doesn't deserve a starting berth at the moment. There's also the problem of how you get him to improve without giving him game time which is why Kenny plays him in some games but not all.

It's obvious at the moment that we are a far better unit with kuyt, maxi and Bellamy working around Suarez than we are with Suarez and Kuyt/Downing /Bellamy working around Carroll and that should be how we play while its working

Why?

Basically as things stand we've spent 35 million on a player who spends most of his time on the bench. That's more than an entire summer budget. That money could undoubtedly have been spent more wisely. Obviously that's easy to say with hindsight, but there's nothing wrong in principle with saying it.

[~LFCHistory~]

IMO You can only judge the true value of a transfer fee at the end of a players time at a club.

In no way would I write him off yet, time is on his side but for me he doesn't deserve a starting berth at the moment. There's also the problem of how you get him to improve without giving him game time which is why Kenny plays him in some games but not all.

It's obvious at the moment that we are a far better unit with kuyt, maxi and Bellamy working around Suarez than we are with Suarez and Kuyt/Downing /Bellamy working around Carroll and that should be how we play while its working

Giving him a run of games would be a massive gamble. We are already slipping behind the other teams fighting for 4th place. If AC is given a run of games and continues to play poorly then we will continue drop points and fall even further behind. The lad was given a chance on Monday night and he failed to deliver.

[kris90210]

Disagree with that. All this talk of the potential he has is based on an impressive 4 months with Newcastle this time last year. That is all. Before and after that spell he has shown nothing to suggest he's a top class striker.

My feeling on Carroll is that if he had stayed at Newcastle or gone to a club with lower expectations like for instance Aston Villa or Stoke he would probably be playing well and scoring a respectable number of goals.
Liverpool FC is a completely different propsition unfortunately. IMO he just dosen't fit in here or suit our style of play, I'm not slating him because I think he is a decent player who would do well at a smaller club, but that's all he is - decent. Not good enough for us.

The potential I think most of us see in him comes from his physical attributes.

* He has shown that he can be almost unplayable in the air thanks to his size, leap and aggression

* He has a terrific shot on him. Very, very powerful, but lacks accuracy. He also needs to work on his ability to create space for himself to take a shot.

* He's a strong, powerful player who shouldn't be getting bullied off the ball.

* He's left footed, which makes him a bit more awkward for defenders.

He has so much he can improve upon, but the building blocks are there. If he had the work ethic / mentality of Lucas Leiva he would be an incredible player. Cisse was much the same. Sadly, I reckon he'll go the way of the latter.

[G]

Why?

Basically as things stand we've spent 35 million on a player who spends most of his time on the bench. That's more than an entire summer budget. That money could undoubtedly have been spent more wisely. Obviously that's easy to say with hindsight, but there's nothing wrong in principle with saying it.

If he doesn't score again this season but knocks in 30 every season after that then he would absolutely be worth 35 million.

[RichC]

IMO You can only judge the true value of a transfer fee at the end of a players time at a club.

In no way would I write him off yet, time is on his side but for me he doesn't deserve a starting berth at the moment. There's also the problem of how you get him to improve without giving him game time which is why Kenny plays him in some games but not all.

It's obvious at the moment that we are a far better unit with kuyt, maxi and Bellamy working around Suarez than we are with Suarez and Kuyt/Downing /Bellamy working around Carroll and that should be how we play while its working

at the moment thats our best option but writing him off yet is well too soon.

I have my doubts whether he'll make it or not but he deserves the chance to prove himself either way, the fee we paid isn't his fault and it shouldn't be used as a tool against him.

[Lecter]

Disagree with that. All this talk of the potential he has is based on an impressive 4 months with Newcastle this time last year. That is all. Before and after that spell he has shown nothing to suggest he's a top class striker.

My feeling on Carroll is that if he had stayed at Newcastle or gone to a club with lower expectations like for instance Aston Villa or Stoke he would probably be playing well and scoring a respectable number of goals.
Liverpool FC is a completely different propsition unfortunately. IMO he just dosen't fit in here or suit our style of play, I'm not slating him because I think he is a decent player who would do well at a smaller club, but that's all he is - decent. Not good enough for us.

I think some people have watched him for more than 4 months though

Barring his time at Liverpool hes improved everytime hes stepped up from youth to Championship from Championship to Prem etc...

For me he could replicate his form levels of Newcastle at LFC

I'm not convinced its solely the style of play and system that is hampering him

[G]

Giving him a run of games would be a massive gamble. We are already slipping behind the other teams fighting for 4th place. If AC is given a run of games and continues to play poorly then we will continue drop points and fall even further behind. The lad was given a chance on Monday night and he failed to deliver.

I know.

I said we should be playing Kuyt, Maxi and Bellamy working off Suarez cos we perform best that way.

[Lecter]

Thing is, like I said, this is the minority. I think most of us who are critical of Carroll feel that he's been dreadful so far, but he obviously has massive potential... every genuine LFC fan wants him to come good.

I think even calling him "dreadful" is harsh

Lets face it 3 weeks ago this forum was in chaos over Dalglish not being good enough etc.....

The situation wasnt that bad then and for me Carroll isnt as bad as people have been suggesting

[danperkins]

"Atrocious" my arse. Nobody would be calling him atrocious if he cost £10m.

People judging on the transfer fee, pure and simple.

No purely based on his performances. His performances have been sub standard for any striker in the premier league and he needs to improve (and then some) and i hope he does.

The transfer fee spiel is a whole different argument, one which i don't care to get into

[Craig_H]

Carroll possesses assets that form shouldn't necessarily affect - his strength, his aggression... he was out fought and beaten to the ball several times by Senderos on Monday - a player, smaller than him!

It's clearly a confidence thing! You dont 'lose' strength and aggression at his age and they arent injury/fitness related really. Unlike with Torres and his explosive burst of pace that he once had.

[~LFCHistory~]

The potential I think most of us see in him comes from his physical attributes.

* He has shown that he can be almost unplayable in the air thanks to his size, leap and aggression

* He has a terrific shot on him. Very, very powerful, but lacks accuracy. He also needs to work on his ability to create space for himself to take a shot.

* He's a strong, powerful player who shouldn't be getting bullied off the ball.

* He's left footed, which makes him a bit more awkward for defenders.

He has so much he can improve upon, but the building blocks are there. If he had the work ethic / mentality of Lucas Leiva he would be an incredible player. Cisse was much the same. Sadly, I reckon he'll go the way of the latter.

That's possibly the biggest dissapointment for many fans I think, in the air he has been generally awful. Monday night was a good example, he spent most of the game being bullied and beaten in the air by Hangeland and the other Fulham CB, tbh I can't remember him winning a single header in the opposition box, can you ??