OPINION
Andy Carroll has spent much of his time at West Ham United on the treatment table, which has become a common theme in the last few years of the striker’s career.
The colossal front man was such a promising youngster when he came through the ranks at Newcastle United and a £35million move to Liverpool looked to have been his ticket to the big time.
Injuries have however taken a huge toll on Carroll as he battles with his body to continue playing at the highest level, and unfortunately for West Ham they have had to bear the brunt of that in recent seasons.
Another setback over the summer has put him back in the treatment room until December at least, and with his contract now running out, Carroll has been handed one final chance to impress at the London Stadium.
According to club insider Claret and Hugh, Manuel Pellegrini has no plans to sell any of his first-team squad members in the upcoming January transfer window.
That obviously includes Carroll, who is set to have returned to action by then, despite the fact that his contract is up at the end of the season.
That would mean that the 29-year-old walks away from the club for free after they spent £15million for him in 2013, while also expending his £90,000-a-week wages for those five years [Spotrac].
This truly is last chance saloon for Carroll if he wants to either earn a short-term rolling contract to stay on at the London Stadium or be given the chance to rebuild his career elsewhere in the division.
In all honesty, there are very few sides in the Premier League who would take a punt on Carroll at the moment, and so he needs to play, and play well, in the final months of the season for that to happen.
Pellegrini looks like to hand him this final shot by keeping him around in January, and he must take it with both hands.
