However, the 24 year old will reportedly have another chance to make his mark at Anfield- if he accepts a slide down the pecking order, with England teammate Daniel Sturridge and talismanic Uruguay forward Luis Suarez now Rodgers' established front two. The Liverpool boss said today that he intends to bolster his squad with further signings in the summer; this will likely include a striker, meaning that Carroll could have a fight on his hands even to win a place on the Reds' bench.
Reports earlier in the season suggested that a Merseyside return would be Carroll's preference at the end of the season, as opposed to permanent moves to Upton Park or to old club Newcastle United, but a virtuoso performance against West Bromwich Albion on Saturday inspired Irons chief Sam Allardyce to declare his intentions to sign the big striker permanently at the end of the season, and Carroll's views on his future may well have changed in the past couple of months.
The man has said little on it himself, and much of the matter that shapes his final decision will likely have to do with whether Liverpool make a late surge in the final weeks of the season to seal a place in Europe for next term. Carroll's options look likely to be narrowed down to a flat choice between West Ham and Liverpool, with the Reds keen to recoup as much of their original £35m outlay on Carroll as possible, with a figure in the region of £17m being mooted, and reports today in the Mail suggesting that the Magpies are unwilling to pay anything like that to land the centre forward. A swap-deal involving Toon star Hatem Ben Arfa could be a viable alternative, but Alan Pardew will take some persuading to part with his star man, even in exchange for a player of Carroll's quality.
Whatever happens, it's not going to be a boring summer...
By Alex Shilling, News Editor
@alexshilling
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