I’ve noticed a two camps forming over the potential that could see Andy Carroll make a sensational return to Newcastle United.
Of course there is a long way to go before any such return happens and I personally have severe doubts over whether it will happen at all, but all the same it does appear that we are actually in for him.
However there are two strong trains of thought forming over the potential transfer. The Andy Carroll we know isn’t the same one that has been at Liverpool for 18 months. On his day he is unplayable and Liverpool haven’t seen that often enough to justify the £35m they shelled out for him in January 2011 which has led to criticism from fans and media alike.
When Carroll left for Liverpool many people wondered what would happen with us. We lost other players like Kevin Nolan, Joey Barton and Jose Enrique soon after, but the upshot is that we’ve done just fine without him and, in my opinion, play better, more attractive football as a result.
Part of the problem with Carroll is that you have to supply him with the right service. Joey Barton was excellent at this and with Kevin Nolan feeding off the scraps we had a trio of players who all looked better than what they actually are. It’s no coincidence that since they’ve been split up the performances of all three of them have suffered.
Do we currently play to Carroll’s strengths and can we supply with with the service that he used to thrive off with our current contingent of players? I’m not so sure. I mean look at our wingers – Hatem Ben Arfa and Jonas Gutierrez – neither of whom are exactly renowned for their pinpoint diagonal crosses. Jonas, bless him, would fall over if he tried to cross a ball like that whilst Hatem is one to run it into the box himself. Marveaux I can’t really comment on as I’ve not seen a great deal of him.
Is Andy Carroll mobile enough to get onto the end of balls threaded through by the likes of Yohan Cabaye? Not on a consistent basis in my view and I struggle to recall a time when he could be the “last man” breaking forward in an attack.
In general I would say our play has moved on from Andy Carroll. His height and aerial prowess would promote a certain brand of football, which is generally sneered upon on Tyneside but seems perfectly acceptable as long as the player involved is a Geordie… However I still think he can play a role for us.
We do need another striker through the door and we know what Carroll can do so on that score it makes sense, and whilst I do think that in general our style of play has evolved shouldn’t it be all about having different options for different scenarios?
Wouldn’t Andy Carroll provide us with that?
Personally speaking I’m not overly against signing him again providing he is willing to wait his time. In no way, shape or form should he be a guaranteed starter although I do believe there will be plenty of game time for him here with all the games we’ll hopefully have this season.
On the other hand there seems to be an awful lot of hype about a player who, in brutal honestly, has done nothing since he left us. If we were signing an unknown striker who would cost somewhere near £15m would the clamour be exactly the same? How about signing Kevin Davies for the same fee? See my point?
There is a lot of romanticising going on and whilst it’s always a nice notion to see a local lad gone wrong returning home we have no way of actually telling if his one season with us was just a flash in the pan or whether he can hit those levels again, especially after spending 18 months pretty much stagnating at Liverpool.
Your thoughts please.
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103 Comments
got to agree with this post, well written, think the fact that he is a geordie is clouding peoples judgement, personally I’d be gutted at signing him for anything like 12 – 20 million when his true worth is about 7 million, I can’t see any top 6 team wanting him to be honest as his style dictates the way you need to play
Have we moved on? Yes, I’d like to think so.
You’d imagine for £10-12m, Carr could find someone cheaper, better, faster, and mentally stronger.
I still don’t think it would come off, but I would be happy if it did, I also think he offers different skills to what we have and I think its important to be able to change tactics for different games.
I do believe that he is a lot better than what some fans try to make him out to be and I find it strange when they say he is a one trick pony and is in general a bit shit and not worth the bother, but still you get Alan Shearer coming out and saying it would be a good move for both player and club.
But then what would Shearer know
Sorry but I like a proper CF, and Andy is certainly that.
We have so many games if we get into the EL group stages.
We’ll need 2 teams.
You can’t travel and play Thursdays and recover to play Sunday.
Also Andy is only 23 and unlikely to risk moving away again, so we’ll be signing a CF for the next 10 years.
We’re not Barcelona lets try a hybrid approach. Andy gives us options to change our style and formation.
Agree with Big Dave @ 3. Carroll is far better than some are saying. At the very least he has the capability of being an excellent option up front. I don’t think he’s worth 20m quid, maybe half that, 12m max.
Dave ,Exactly , I tend to think Shearer knows a thing or two
. He looked miles better than Rooney at the Euros ,yet we all rave about him .I know some will point out that Rooney was not fit ,but he’s never looked that good at tournaments imo .I thought AC was excellent in that game his hold up play and first touch were all good. I didn’t here many people slagging him off when he was our number 9 and banging them in. I do agree we play very differently now but there will be times when someone like him suits the style we need to play against certain teams, horses for courses as it were. Pards seems to want him back so he must be sure he has the players at his disposal to provide him with the service he needs. With regard to his time at Liverpool ,he was injured on arriving and KD never had the system to suit him, however he was looking good again towards the end of the season, and with England showed what he can do.
I agree with Geoff ‘n’ Dave, I think £12M is enough tho imo although I reckon Pards and Ashley know better than me how much they have to spend on players so I’ll assume they’ve considered all options
add to his attacking qualities his defensive ones at set pieces corners etc he isn’t beat too often.
But if you go by some of the talent spotters on here he’s shite
@6 hear* not here
@Dave agree with all the comment except the Shearer part. Shearer has convinced himself that he will make a top class manager one day
He’s 23, he’s an England international and a Geordie who is itching to come to Newcastle. He’s probably the best header of a ball in England, a proper battering ram of a forward with a decent touch (OK nothing amazing) and who can score with both feet. At the end of the day he’s a player we simply refused to sell for £30m only 18 months ago.
To me this is a no brainer. Sure he’s had a poor time of things at Liverpool but I believe that class is permanent and in recent months he has started looking more like his old self, including getting back in the England team. Also there are some players that just play better in a different colour shirt – Robbie Keane springs to mind – or maybe it’s just some cannot play in a Liverpool shirt (haha). Previously Carroll looked a beast in black and white, and also for England, but has never looked comfortable in red at all.
He is probably not worth £20m but I would seriously consider £15m and might go to £17-18m if necessary. But NOT as a swap deal involving Demba Ba – still the best all round forward at our club I feel.
Though if it means instead of positions we need i would rather buy someone cheaper. Back up shouldn’t really cost 10 mill + for a team at our level.
ST you might be right about Als management skills but do you honestly think he doesn’t know a good striker when he see’s one ?
Richie and Co I agree with the value I wouldn’t want to pay anymore than £12mil but I wouldn’t worry about our club wasting money because they just don’t do that.
Andy Carroll. Neanderthal or Ibrahimovitch. Good question. He is certainly already the best English old fashioned No 9 of his generation. He also has the potential to become a great on the world stage. We have seen flashes of that and contrary to some opinions I believe that he has improved his all round game in the last 18 months, At one time we all hoped he would be the England No 9 for the next 10 years the way Shearer was before him. He could still do that. He also has the potential to flop badly. However I also believe his personality has improved for his Merseyside experience. Is he worth £10m + probably.
The real question is where would he fit in. Some seem to be arguing that Stoke are a bit too sophisticated for him, whilst others like myself feel that AC Milan would be perfect.
So would he get a game at Newcastle. I think that our play has changed since he left, we have more options and potential. But I would argue that our game has adapted to the new players as much as evolved. Would he be a guaranteed starting 11? I don’t think so, he would have to earn that right. Would he improve our squad and options? Too right he would.
So Have the club moved on and evolved beyond the point where AC is of use to us is probably the most contentious and pretentious way of asking the question. Would he get a game at NUFC? yes definitely. Are there better cheaper options out there? I’m not convinced. There are many strikers with the potential to do well in the premiership, But AC has the potential to be more.
Having said all of that we don’t need him anymore, and we as fans have moved on from the trauma of his sale to Liverpool. So if the deal falls through then we can move on. Would hate to see him at another EPL club though.
Cisse is our most instinctive striker ,just gets the ball and shoots, doesn’t even have to think about it ,it would seem, total class .Ba is a great striker but not as instinctive as Cisse but very mobile and clever at beating the last man . Both guys are very different to AC but that’s why it’s a good thing to try and sign him as he offers a more direct approach which you sometimes need Every game will be different and we have to take the right approach to each one, it’s not always possible to play a beautiful passing game and win . I do agree that £12/13 should be our top offer though.
I think because he is English his market value is between £10 to £15 million. That is the truth of it. He is good player and I think he is more than hoofing it up to him and been a battering ram type of player but they are his main strengths. If he comes in he will give us a different option esp in Europe if we come against any Easteren European teams , I think dont they would handle him. In regards to Shearer’s comments , I would take them with a pinch of salt. Im sure he is friendly enough with Carrol so he is hardly going to come out and slate him is he?
Johno or rather than Shearer coming out and making a fool of himself he just wouldn’t come out and say owt.
Something just doesnt sit right with the whole carroll saga think hitman mentioned that yesterday,
It just seems far too public open and unecessary…
See de jong has gone shame that was convinced he would come
I recall defences shitting themselves when he played for us. He battered defenders all game. We could also do with some English lads in the squad.
Another good one Toonsy All AC brings to the table is options but for that someone is going to do some bench warming.As proved with AC at Liverpool and Torres at Chelsea this does not help their game.I can see him improving his game but will need match time to fit in.Ive spent to many bad years watching us humping the ball up to the big guy.It was ok for the players that fed off the scraps like Tudor and Gowling but not much else.I like the idea we have moved on and are starting to play a more modern style of attractive fooball.
i had to share this…..have ridiculous
http://www.newcastleunited-mad.co.uk/news/tmnw/taylor_up_for_sale_749824/index.shtml?
Sometimes Dave its better to say nowt and let people think your an idiot than opening your mouth and confirming it
how even
carroll is dog shit and if we buy him it will unbalance the entire way we play now.. we wil lgo from a ball on the grass back to hoofball looking for AC’s head. We wqould try to play to his strengths while the rest of the team suffer becuase of this.
I see we have offered 3.5 million ofr douglas today.. we obviously dont really want him to offer money like that. Same as Debuschey at 4 million euro… i have no idea why we are waiting so long to get defenders in.. the pre-season is as usual slipping through our fingers.
“Sorry but I like a proper CF, and Andy is certainly that.”
Spoken like a true septuagenarian
The mere fact that some on here are even beginning to compare Andy Carroll to Alan Shearer is ridiculous.
Shearer was massively superior in every single attribute apart from height, which perhaps gives Andy the advantage when heading the ball.
Other than that, holding up, passing, crossing, finishing, link play, strength, brains, leadership, timing, pace, vision, anticipation… if we rate Shearer 10 then Andy would be a 4.
Those that think Andy would be the “new Shearer” are deluded.
Your thoughts?
JJ who is it is comparing him to Shearer ??
To answer the brief…Have we moved on from Andy Carroll?
No, I wouldn’t say that, but is he a luxury option. Yes. Is he overpriced at 15mil. Yes. Are a central defender and full back and versitile forward/wing far more of a priority. Yes.
The only way I’d take him back is on the cheap 8mil-10mil or on loan.
Dave
On Twitter I’ve seen numerous people saying Andy Carroll is the new Shearer and we should bring him home.
Then I read Premandup saying Andy was Englands best old fashioned forward, comparing him to what Shearer was for England.
Carroll has potential but if he fulfilled it to the max, he wouldn’t be half the striker Shearer was at his best.
Carroll is a battering ram, a bloody good one, but an average footballer despite what others seem to think. Whereas Shearer was the complete forward, he had absolutely everything you want from a striker.
De Jong went to Borussia for 11m pounds, if the Chronicle has it right. How much did we bid for him? Only 10m? And now we may go for 16m for big Andy?
I was not comparing him to Shearer or Ibrahimovitch as footballers, merely pointing out that like them Carroll has the potential to be more than just a good premiership player. When he was with us this board was full of comments hoping he would become a new No9 for England for the foreseeable future. When he was sold we were devastated, despite the good business side of it. He is clearly better than the other English No9s about at the moment.
Clearly if a deal does not get done no probs. If it does get done then I trust the boards judgement re the fees whatever they may be.
As I said I would not like to see him turning out for West Ham or Fulham, but its no big deal.
If he does come back then I think that it adds to the squad rather than detracts.
FSOTC
Don’t think our offer was the problem with De Jong, I think they were using us to drive up the price for Borussia M, which is where he really wanted to go for CL football.
There isn’t a chance in hell Ashley will pay 16mil for Andy Carroll. If they media believe that, then they are being fed bullshit and are simply thick.
Premandup
I understand that Andy Carroll was a loss at the time, but back then we were a top 12 team just back in the prem and we played a very direct game basing our tactics around Carroll. It got us 11th place, probably would have got us around 9th if Carroll wasn’t injured and then sold.
We finished 5th last year. We need to push on from that, not go backwards like Liverpool did when they forked out 35mil for him.
JJ…you said “some on here” comparing him to Shearer, then defended that statement by saying it was actually on twitter…..maybe someone didn’t read the comments by “some on here” properly before posting
I agree with JJ, Liam, Big Dave, Richie, Craig, Johno, Kim, Prem & Billy
With Caroll penchant for fighting with teammates (Zoggy, STaylor), would he fit in our teamwork ethos? What would be the odd for AC to fight HBA if he rejoins us?
JJ ,we finished 5th last year because of hard work ,team spirit and some fine play.We also finished 5th because a lot of other top teams had a bad season ,lets not pretend otherwise .All those teams ,Chelsea ,Spurs and Arsenal have strengthened very well and will all be much harder to beat now ,factor in european games and we will be hard pushed to get 5th again especially if we don’t strengthen in vital areas. Wether we finish 5th or higher is not just reliant on wether we sign Carroll or not ,it will be a combination of factors in truth as always.
F*ck Carroll, lets beef up the back line … lets get it sorted first and foremost…
Kim….In the top half of the league last season only Chelski and Liverpool had less points than they did the previous season(I think), so I don’t think we can really say “lots of teams”
I think we are capable of pursuing more than one deal at a time Aussie.
But agree with the sentiment. Debuchy, M’baiwa or Sakho, and Pieters please, not convinced by Douglas.
Kimtoon
We did far better without Carroll than we did with Carroll. We had more team spirit, more unity, less baggage in the dressing room and less bad press.
Why on Earth would you want him back if that’s reason we excelled last season.
Liverpool thought they were strengthening by buying overated overpriced English talent… Carroll was top of that list.
Richie
F##& off!!
Prem, are you sure we can handle more than one deal at a time
JJ
Richie .Interesting ,it just seemed like they was shit then
.No matter they have all strengthend anyway so it will be tougher than last season ,since so far we havn’t addressed our dodgy defence or need for a back up striker . We just seem to be messing around a bit with daft offers like 4m euros for Debuchy 
.
Right off to take mum to hosp ,catch you later lads.
Even if Carroll is twice as good as last season he will only score 8-10 goals
Kim…it’s another myth
JJ so you made a mistake in saying that ” some on here ” when infact no one on here is comparing him to shearer ?
Aussie….to be fair he did start to look more like the AC of old towards the end of last season….the big question is, will he continue that or be back to the way he was at the start of last season
JJ get back in ya cuboard dumbo
rich you havent been on the other side have you
batty…..nope, not worth my time or effort….although technically I am a shareholder there
Rich, I keep hearing/reading ‘Carroll will come good’ but hey, what if he doesn’t? There seems to be a lot of assumptions being made that he will be good ol’ Andy again when he plays with us …. Look that may be the case but, I will wait and see before making the call.. I am basing my opinion on what I have witnessed the past 18 months..
aye rich that 10 bob went a long way
Batty, it was the goverments money anyway
Aussie….hence my “big question”
batty…we’re not all rich like you feckers from Cannock you know
bait time
rich cannock
then he changed it to cambell road doubt that very much it you wont spot a white person in and around cambell road 
Like what the women in your life say Rich, ‘it wasn’t that big’.
aussie are you missing troy
I’m reading Simon Kuper & Symanski’s “Soccernomics” right now and based on a couple of things in there… well, I don’t know what to make of it.
AGAINST: They say, basically, never buy a center forward. So there goes big Andy.
FOR: They also write that the time to get a player is 22-23 years old–not younger and not older, because athletes begin to physically peak then and by that time it’s pretty clear what they’ll be capable of.
FOR: There’s a big cultural adjustment argument that they make, and Andy “coming home” would probably fit the bill. It seems like he was pretty unhappy with the move to Liverpool, always wanted to be at NUFC and all that.
Maybe this explains part of his troubles at Liverpool too–the adjustment, even though it’s the same country and all that. I mean, I ‘m a New Yorker, but I can tell you moving to Houston would be a very big, unpleasant adjustment for me. And shit like that can “put the zap on your brain,” to quote Apocalypse Now…
Ah, who knows? I’m just babbling on cause I have a few minutes on my hand this morning before the whole fucking city starts to melt again. This is our 4th heat wave this year, in New York. I woke up this morning to find the temperature in my apartment was 86 degrees… at 6am…
Batty
FSOTC people like you make me sick moaning about the temperature
,have some of our rain 
Batty, brother, I tell you what–let’s average our weather out. After four days of upper 90s, I’ll gladly take some of your rain.
Come and live in Western Australia, FSOTC… no such thing as a 4th heat wave mate… everyday in summer is a feckin heat wave
i really cant see ashleys off of 6 quid for douglsas and a tenenr for debuchy being high enough, we will of course keep trying to the very end of the window.. then fail. Are we now the only team to have weakend in the PREM since the window opened?
FSOTC after 3 months of floods 4 days of hot weather wouldnt touch the sides
Sounds like Noah will be floating by soon Batty
aussie iam 44 and never seen a sumer so bad
I’ll pass, Aussie, thanks.
One “fun” thing about NYC is you get these stretches, where it’s fooking hot, and then in the winter you get sub-freezing weather. It’s a value pack of a climate!
I think I’ve turned this into a weather blog. Sorry, all.
Shit, you look so much older in your photo Batty
Summer and your having floods?? Sounds feckin depressing mate… I couldn’t handle that tbh.. rather the heat..
@Craig.. & everyone else
Just read, not sure if it’s true, Douglas is actually out of contract this summer in August..?
And the agreeing of a transfer fee is just to avoid it going to a tribunal (due to his age)
Truth in it?
aussie i had that photo took when i was 28
Fans, we need a break from all the carroll BS
Is Douglas the cat who’s stuck in Holland, waiting on his immigration status? Can’t join us till the end of August, or do I have him confused with somebody else?
Batty
, hard life mate 
Lemme ask youse ‘dis: Any good soccer books to recommend?
Or, rather, “football books”, for the purists & pedants.
That’s what rainy summers will do to you, Aussie. You age on fast-forward.
Fans, There’s one called – Viz .. try that one mate
Solano. His contract was supposed to expire this summer but then it came out that twenty had the option to extend it for another year. Sky are showing pictures of him training with twente, if thats from this preseason i’d assume the option extension was right
You don’t have to like it, you just have to buy it!
Fans
you are onto it mate 
Ashley and Lambias need to use this when negotiating transfers:
http://www.viz.co.uk/images/pullouts/viz_pokerface.pdf
AMF just read your state needs another 49thou workers,richie can drive cattle-wagons,do you do over-size cabs
@Dub ahh right.
Still, one year left, 4 mill is probably about right. Seeing as half the people on here value Simmo at less than that and he is English + proven in the Prem.
Andy Carroll could be released back into the wild!!!
http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/sport/carroll-could-be-released-back-into-wild-2012071634379?utm_campaign=18072012&utm_source=emailCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=
Ice
there is certainly some spaces that need filling… Richie will be ideal, he takes up loads of space 
Must admit that I agree with the majority of what Toonsy said. The point about Nolan, Barton and Carroll looking better than they actually are when playing together is an interesting point and one that I agree with. The problem with AC i think is that he’s just too much of a specialist player. While I don’t think that Carroll is limited to simply restricted to being good in the air, his game is too limited perhaps to become a truly great centre forward. If you don’t create opportunities to attack balls into the box then he won’t create much for himself either, whereas the likes of Ba or Cisse will. One thing I certainly wouldn’t want to see would be us making a move for Carroll at the expense of either of those two.
It’s a tough one really. As much as I’d like to see Andy playing in the black and white again, it would be a risk and maybe the money could be better spent elsewhere. I just hope when Ashley and Co. make a decision on him, they make a business decision rather than a sentimental one. We’ve seen already that when they make a business decision regarding a player it’s usually the right one.
Also, I’ve got a new post written by an NUFC fan up on my blog if you want to have a look. You can find it here:
http://www.extratimeandpenalties.com
Cheers!
It’s mostly just a romantic notion that makes me want Carroll back. However he is worth 20 million max! He would not be a guaranteed starter except thru injuries and squad rotation.
I really don’t want him back for the same reason many others don’t, his presence would affect how the rest of our squad plays on the pitch.
Although, now that I think about it, there were plenty of games last year when I recall us thumping the ball forward, usually Williamson being thr culprit. Hmmm, we shall see
xtratimeandpens I don’t think you need to worry about Jabba and co making any sentimental decisions about Carroll or anyother player, or even the Toon as its all just business to them as they have no sentimental attachment to the club.
Batty young aussie seems quite taken by you, I think you’ll need to watch yoursel
Aussie you need to give poor Richie a break even he has feelings
He does provide the “different option” and Pardew’s not averse to messing with formations, so he could certainly come in handy. I suppose he could also continue to improve & evolve, since he’s so young. The question is price. I don’t know… 15m is probably the extreme limit. There’s likely to be a more suitable striker from a no-name team just waiting for Carr to spot him.
BD, re: your last post..Richie started it
– Young is not a word that I can be likened to anymore & Batty is quite safe, I will chat to anyone, or argue if needs be 
Carroll = a young Crouch…
Haha – check oot Cheik! > https://twitter.com/Sammy_Ameobi/status/225586141083082753/photo/1
AMF a man for all ages
,even dave safe in his 80s 
Interesting TC but I’m not sure that parachuting is the safest past time….
Ice, I guess I am young compared to an 80 year old like Dave
aussie
I disagree, Crouch isnt a great header of the ball despite his height, He doesnt strike a ball as well, His hold up play isnt as good, He cant hit thirty yard passes, He cant run with the ball and ive certainly never seen him bully defenders the way mandy did for us and even at times for liverpoop certainly terry in the cup final…
CC, your description sounds exactly like Carroll mate
Jokes aside, I reckon Crouch has better foot skills and technique than Carroll but he is lacking a few too many kg’s to really boss defenders around.. My comparison was based more on the role they are destined to play in the teams they play for…
The nearest comparison to Carroll is Bas Dost and I reckon Dost is the slightly better player..
Dost has just been sold by Heerenveen to Wolfsburg for a fee of about £6.5m.
Carroll is not worth more than that.
Aye i know im making him sound like Pele but you just to watch that 5-1 or the villa 6-0 again, He is absolutely unplayable on form.
I agree about the roles they play but Carroll can be so much more than just a big lump who can win flick ons Crouch cant IMHO…
@Aussie
It’s not half as busy when Im not posting. Have you noticed? You need to be more interesting.
Think him coming home would be good for newcastle despite what some say about him. bar crouch hes the best header of a football in england for me
current market value for me is 10 to 15 million
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