Paul Merson raved about West Ham attacker Andy Carroll as he shared he would be the type of player you’d take all day long but highlighted the concern there is surrounding the player’s injury record.
The Sky Sports pundit was looking at Premier League players whose contracts are set to expire at the end of the season and picked out Carroll as a player you’d look to sign.
However Merson pointed out that only a fit Carroll was worth while and that with him you’d probably have to offer him a pay-as-you go deal if you were to sign him.
“If Andy Carroll was fit, you’d take him all day long but then you had to find a deal with Carroll that would probably have to be pay as you go really,” said Merson on Sky Sports’ The Debate (Sky Sports Premier League, Monday, January 7th, 22:42).
The Hammers forward has previously spoken out this season about his unclear future as he shared that even though there is a two-year option available to extend his stay at the London Stadium, he’s waiting to see what happens.
“Yes, I want to stay and I want a new deal but I can’t really think about that every day. I’ve just got to play my football when I get the chance,” said Carroll, as quoted by Sky Sports earlier in January.
“I’ve got a two-year option at the end of the season so we’ll see what happens. I’ve got to play a few more games like this one and, like the manager says, I’ve got to impress him in the minutes he gives me.”
OPINION
Merson’s assessment of Carroll is more than fair because if you’re able to ignore the players chequered injury record, on paper he is a player that a Premier League side would love to have. The 30-year-old has played 136 times for the Hammers and has made total of 206 appearances in England’s top-flight across his career, so has plenty of experience when it comes to helping Manuel Pellegrini’s side. However as shown in his eight outings this season, even when he is passed fit you can see that previous injuries are still affecting him. Carroll has looked rusty so far this campaign and doesn’t look anywhere near the player he is capable of being. It understandable that this is the case as he has missed a lot of football recently due to an injury with his whole pre-season disrupted due to it as well. For this reason, Hammers supporters probably wouldn’t mind waving goodbye to Carroll in the summer when his deal expires but they may end up regretting his exit if he somehow manages to stay fit and is picked up by another Premier League team. However that is a big if and given the amount of investment the Hammers have made in him in recent times, maybe it’s time for another team to take a risk on him.
