Written by : Dylan Ingram

There has been serious speculation around the transfer of the forgotten West Ham number 9. Whether or not he actually ends up on the move is a mystery to the football world, as we all know how rumors in January and the summer can be, but some would suggest that the move is highly sought after by main man Mauricio Pochettino.

Tottenham would be making the move to provide insurance for an attack that has lost a few key pieces with Harry Kane being out until March, Dele Alli potentially out for an extended period after his leg injury against Fulham, and Son Heung-Min set to miss about 5 games as he participates in the Asian Cup (although he will be home sooner than planned, after South Korea exited the cup this afternoon). Is Andy Carroll the bargain brand Harry Kane that Pochettino desires?

When discussing a mid-season transfer being made by a top club in the English Premier League many of us would be surprised to catch the name Andy Carroll and Tottenham in the same sentence. Is this the 09-10 season where “Andy and Co.” just won promotion with 17 goals in 39 appearances for Newcastle?! Nope you guessed it, its 2019 and Andy Carroll has spent the majority of his West Ham career seriously injured, or coming off the bench to help scrape up some points to keep West Ham from relegation. This is the perspective of many who have seen the articles suggesting the move is in place. So why in the world would Andy Carroll end up playing for Mauricio Pochettino and why would he be both a fit for the club, and also fit enough to play? Theres many reasons one could muster of why he couldn’t or shouldn’t but lets be unbiased here and look at the situation objectively.

Andy Carroll is a good footballer in the similar sense that Mark Noble is a good footballer. He can provide quality to a side that isn’t looking to bring in their main number 9 but someone to cover for him, or someone to come off the bench and bring a spark to the unit and Andy Carroll can do just that and at 2 million pounds some would say that is a steal! It’s easy to look at Andy Carroll’s resume and write him off, but the guy has got serious talent. He’s been quoted as “The best header of a football” many times by many upstanding individuals who deserve respect in the game. The trouble is, we look at him and see a player who’s spent too much time on the sidelines or in the back mending one of his innumerable injuries (especially after that horrible sitter he missed against Bournemouth off of his right foot.)

Just like many other sports, common football fans tend to be a bit “fair-weather” and biased to the club they support. As a West Ham fan its even easier to make a joke of Andy Carroll and forget the things he has done for the club, but you can’t deny the talent he can provide to a side. If it weren’t for injuries many would agree that Andy could do great things in the Premier League – but on the other side, when you take a closer look, many people have been found questioning Andy’s work ethic and character. Early on in his career, while still establishing himself as a player, he was known to be quite rebellious and to be needing someone to set him straight from time to time. It’s quite easy to say that Andy has always had issues with authority which could explain his lack of growth and his inconsistency, but maybe under the right man in the right environment he could make a serious change for the best – which might be one of the reasons Pochettino is interested in him along with his skills as a player.

It’s a bit of a stretch to say that this deal is going to happen – but one thing is for sure, most West Ham fan’s would be happy to see the deal go through.