Players - Andy Carroll

Andy Carroll
Birthdate: 6 January 1989
Birthplace: Gateshead, England
Other clubs: Newcastle United (2005-11), Preston North End (loan 2007-08), West Ham United (loan 2012-13; transfer, 2013-19), Newcastle United (2019-21), Reading (2021-22), West Bromwich Albion (2022), Reading (2022-23), Amiens (2023-)
Signed from: Newcastle United
Signed for LFC: £35m, 31.01.2011
International debut: 17.11.2010 vs. France
International caps: 9/2 (8/2 at LFC) - 12.10.2012
Liverpool debut: 06.03.2011
Last appearance: 26.08.2012
Debut goal: 11.04.2011
Last goal: 05.05.2012
Contract expiry: 19.06.2013
Win ratio: 44.83% W:26 D:13 L:19
Games/goals ratio: 5.27
Games/assists ratio: 14.5
Honours: League Cup 2012
Total games/goals opposite LFC: 9 / 2
League games / goals / assists: 44 / 6 / 2
Total games / goals / assists: 58 / 11 / 4

Player Profile

Andrew Thomas Carroll was born in the north-eastern town of Gateshead but signed a professional contract with neighbouring Newcastle United when he was only 17-years-old. He made four Premier League appearances for the Magpies in 2006/07, in addition to becoming the club’s youngest-ever player to feature in a European fixture when he played against Palermo on 2 November 2006. His FA Cup debut came two months later against Birmingham City. Carroll first played for England’s Under-19 side in 2007 after Scotland had named him in their U-19 side as he was eligible to play for both countries. In 2007 he was the recipient of a ‘rising star’ award bearing the name of Newcastle legend Jackie Milburn but despite his growing reputation was loaned out to Championship club Preston North End to give him a better chance of regular first-team football. But his time at Deepdale was not a great success, just one goal from twelve League and cup matches and the first red card of his fledgling career against Scunthorpe. He returned to Newcastle in January 2008 and had added a further four Premier League matches to his total by the end of the 2007/08 season but had still not scored for the Magpies. To be fair to him he had only started one game and was often a late substitute. By the time the following season started, Carroll was much more in the first-team picture despite the team battling, ultimately unsuccessfully, against relegation from the Premier League. He scored his debut goal in a 2-2 draw against West Ham on 10 January 2009 and added two more in a total of 16 matches. Carroll's career blossomed in 2009/10 when he scored 17 goals as Newcastle returned to the top division as winners of the Championship.

In the summer of 2010, Carroll was handed the legendary No. 9 shirt at Newcastle that Jackie Milburn, Malcolm Macdonald and Alan Shearer had worn with such distinction. Carroll was understandably quite proud: "Alan Shearer was my idol as a young lad and who would have thought I'd be following in his footsteps?," Carroll enthused. "When you look at the fantastic players down the years who have worn the shirt, it sends shivers down your spine, it's amazing. It's every young Geordie lad's dream to be the Newcastle United No. 9." The legendary shirt certainly did Carroll no harm as the goals continued to flow when Newcastle resumed their place at English football’s top table. He had delivered 11 goals from 19 League games halfway through the season. His powerful performances for Newcastle had been noted by England’s national manager, Fabio Capello, who played Carroll in a Wembley friendly against France in November 2010. Liverpool had already seen first-hand his all-round strength and shooting capabilities at Newcastle in December. He beat Pepe Reina from distance and had a hand in the other two goals in a 3-1 victory. Incoming Newcastle manager Alan Pardew attempted to dissuade potential suitors for his in-form striker by declaring that he was not for sale and had a “bright future at St. James’ Park”. A week later Carroll was injured during a defeat at Tottenham which kept him out of action as the January transfer window opened. Because the player was unavailable for selection, it was maybe a bit of a surprise when Liverpool made their move towards the end of the window, although Kenny Dalglish already knew that he was likely to lose Fernando Torres to Chelsea and knew he had to act swiftly with time running out for him to secure an adequate replacement. The size of the fee astounded the footballing world, £35 million, making Carroll the most expensive British player in history. 

From being short of cover in attack, Liverpool were able to unveil two new forwards on the same day, Carroll and Luis Suarez, with Reds’ supporters eager to see what impact the new men would have. Carroll needed a month to recover from his injury and had to wait for his first goal until in his sixth match against Manchester City at Anfield, a ferocious left-foot strike from the edge of the penalty area. He added a second ten minutes before half-time with a towering header from a Meireles' cross from the left. For much of the 2011/12 season, the enormous transfer seemed to hang like a millstone around the young striker's neck. Only nine goals from 47 first-team matches did not seem to represent good value for money. But big Andy persevered and got his reward in the middle of April when he headed late winners against Blackburn in the Premier League and against Everton in the FA Cup semi-final. He scored in the FA Cup final against Chelsea and was denied a second goal by a miraculous save. His improved form towards the end of the season earned him a place in Roy Hodgson's 23-man squad for the Euro 2012. As soon as Brendan Rodgers took over at Liverpool it was abundantly clear that Carroll didn't suit his requirements. On 30 August 2012 Carroll was loaned for the whole of the 2012/13 season to Sam Allardyce's West Ham without a replacement coming in following the collapse of the deal to bring Clint Dempsey in from Fulham, leaving the Reds a striker short until January.

Carroll took time to settle in at West Ham but wasn't helped by receiving a hamstring injury on his debut. Once recovered, however, he had a strong end to the season and ended up with a respectable seven goals after appearing in twenty-four Premier League matches. As his loan-spell finished, West Ham and Liverpool appeared to reach agreement over a fee for a permanent transfer but were waiting for the player himself to agree to the move and also agree to the personal terms that were on offer. Carroll's permanent transfer to West Ham United was completed on 19 June 2013, with Liverpool receiving a fee of £15 million. The striker made 16 first-team appearances for West Ham in 2013/14, scoring twice. The following season he managed only fourteen appearances due to injury but 2015/16 was better, scoring nine times in 27 games, including one against Liverpool at Upton Park. Injuries have continued to hamper Carroll's career and at the end of the 2018/19, the final four months of which he had an ankle injury, his deal was not renewed. He rejoined his old club Newcastle on 8 August 2019 but failed to score in nineteen league appearances (fifteen as substitute) in his first campaign back there. In 2020/21 he started just four times, coming off the bench a further fourteen and scored just one goal. He became a free agent at the end of the season with manager Steve Bruce saying the departure was amicable and he needed to be playing more. 

During the summer 2021 transfer window Carroll failed to find another club but did agree a short term two month deal with Championship side Reading on 15th November. Their manager Velijko Paunovic commented "Andy is looking for a new challenge in his career and we need a player with his quality and vast experience." His final appearance for the Royals on 12th January was a 7-0 home defeat to Fulham in which he had two two sensational goals - a overhead kick and a volley- disallowed after VAR checks. After failing to agree a contract extension he joined West Bromwich Albion at the end of January 2022, scoring three goals in fifteen appearances between then and the end of the season, when he was released. On 16 September he agreed a short term deal to rejoin Reading, raising eyebrows by taking the number two jersey, explaining it was his daughter's second birthday. He scored nine times although Reading were relegated to League One. Carroll initially remained with the Royals but made a surprise move to French second division side, Amiens, on 1 September 2023 when he triggered a release clause.
Appearances per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 44 6 6 2 0 58
2010-2011 7 0 0 2 0 9
2011-2012 35 6 6 0 0 47
2012-2013 2 0 0 0 0 2
A more detailed look at the player's appearances
Apps Minutes Opponent
6 282 Manchester City
4 281 WBA
4 234 Stoke City
4 215 Chelsea
3 270 Everton
3 268 Tottenham
3 190 Newcastle United
3 183 Sunderland
3 142 Arsenal
3 135 Manchester United
2 180 Wolves
2 180 Blackburn Rovers
2 167 Fulham
2 165 Swansea City
2 123 Braga
2 103 Bolton Wanderers
2 47 Wigan Athletic
2 42 Aston Villa
1 103 Cardiff City
1 90 Brighton & Hove Albion
1 68 Exeter City
1 10 Norwich City
1 8 QPR
1 3 Oldham Athletic
Total Started/substitutions
35 Started
4 On the bench
23 Substitute
9 Substituted
Total Venue
28 Home
27 Away
3 Neutral
Total Competition
44 Premier League
6 FA Cup
6 League Cup
2 Europa League
Total W D L Win % Manager
56 26 12 18 46.4% Kenny Dalglish
2 0 1 1 0% Brendan Rodgers
Goals per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 6 4 1 0 0 11
2010-2011 2 0 0 0 0 2
2011-2012 4 4 1 0 0 9
2012-2013 0 0 0 0 0 0
A more detailed look at the player's goalscoring
Total Started/substitutions
8 Started
3 Substitute
Total Competition
6 Premier League
4 FA Cup
1 League Cup
Total Goal minute period
1 1-15 minutes
2 31-45 minutes
3 46-60 minutes
2 61-75 minutes
3 76-90 minutes
Total Goal origin
11 Open play
Assists per season
Season League FA LC Europe Other Total
Totals 2 2 0 0 0 4
2010-2011 0 0 0 0 0 0
2011-2012 2 2 0 0 0 4
2012-2013 0 0 0 0 0 0
A more detailed look at the player's assists
Milestone Appearances
# Date Against Stadium Competition
1 06.03.2011 Manchester United Anfield League
50 10.04.2012 Blackburn Rovers Ewood Park League
Milestone Goals
# Minute Date Against Stadium Competition
1 13 11.04.2011 Manchester City Anfield League
Related Articles
The real story of how Carroll became the ultimate No 9

Written by Ian Ladyman at the Daily Mail on 30th April 2011.

Reds produce the perfect birthday present for Kenny Dalglish

Liverpool Echo press report on Liverpool - Manchester United on 06.03.2011.

Stunning Reds too slick for City

Liverpool Echo press report on Liverpool - Manchester City on 11.04.2011.

Profile on Andy Carroll

In 2007 he was the recipient of a ‘rising star’ award bearing the name of Newcastle legend Jackie Milburn.

How a small left-back became a Liverpool FC number 9

The Andy Carroll story by Neil Jones, Liverpool Echo in March 2011.

Carroll's £35million journey set to begin

By DAN RIPLEY at the Daily Mail on 3rd March 2011.

Related Quotes

"Now, I want to make it clear I’ve no axe to grind with Andy. I found him to be a good lad and his spell at the club wasn’t without highlights. He did what every Liverpool No 9 should do and scored two winning goals against Everton, including one at Wembley in the 2012 FA Cup semi-final. I wanted Liverpool to sign him, especially after he tormented our defence one day at St James’ Park. If we could have got him for between £12-15m, it would have been good business. The feeling around the club when we were in for him was that maybe he could mature into our Didier Drogba. Unfortunately, though, Liverpool’s decision to pay £35million was a big mistake and it never did Andy any favours. He started well, with two goals against Manchester City on his first start, but it quickly became apparent he wasn’t the right fit for the club. In training, he’d complain if the ball was not flung into the box — and I don’t mean from out wide. He wanted the ball to come in to him from close to the halfway line, but at Liverpool that was never going to happen. "

There were other things. He found the intensity of playing three games every week difficult. Before he might have been used to getting himself right for a match on a Saturday, then spending time socially with his mates — as we all did when we were young — but at Liverpool the training and professional demands are relentless. He would very rarely complete a full week on the training field at Melwood and, eventually, that takes a toll. If you aren’t fully conditioned, you are susceptible to injuries and Andy suffered his fair share. Another major issue was the fact he lacked pace. He suits the way Sam Allardyce operates and is West Ham’s focal point but at Liverpool that would never have been the case. Andy may feel Brendan made the decision about him too quickly but it was the right call."

Carra on Andy Carroll in April 2014

Other Clubs
Club Season Club rank League apps League goals Total apps Total goals
Newcastle United 2006-2007 England Premier League 4 0 7 0
Newcastle United 2007-2008 England Premier League 4 0 6 0
Preston North End 2007-2008 England Championship 11 1 12 1
Newcastle United 2008-2009 England Premier League 14 3 16 3
Newcastle United 2009-2010 England Championship 39 17 42 19
Newcastle United 2010-2011 England Premier League 19 11 19 11
West Ham United 2012-2013 England Premier League 0 0 0 0
West Ham United 2013-2014 England Premier League 15 2 16 2
West Ham United 2014-2015 England Premier League 14 5 16 5
West Ham United 2015-2016 Premier League 27 9 32 9
West Ham United 2016-2017 Premier League 18 7 22 7
West Ham United 2017-2018 Premier League 16 3 18 3
West Ham United 2018-2019 Premier League 12 0 14 1
Newcastle United 2019-2020 Premier League 19 0 21 0
Newcastle United 2020-2021 Premier League 18 1 22 1
Reading 2021-2022 Championship 8 2 8 2
WBA 2021-2022 Championship 15 3 15 3
Reading 2023-2024 League One 2 0 2 0
Total 255 64 288 67