I actually like Andy Carroll. I want him to succeed here because I think he brings a lot to the game and a lot to Liverpool. He reminds me of John Toshack, on the field and off it. Toshack had no finesse, he had no guile. He stayed on his feet, made himself available, and scared the shit out of opposition defenders. But he had a Keegan. Carroll was at his best when Suarez was out. He had a nice understanding with Kuyt, who has much more in common with that old-fashioned guileless play than Suarez does. I simply don’t think that Carroll and Suarez will ever play to each other’s strengths. Carroll needs to stay on his feet – he’ll learn that. I’m glad he was pissed off at being subbed yesterday. But I want to see him throwing his arms in the air less. I don’t want to see him sitting on his arse in the box anymore, full of indignation and railing against the world. I want him to grow up. He’s got time to do that. Controversially, if it came down to a choice between selling Suarez and selling Carroll, I’d sell Suarez. He’s a great player, but we don’t do half as well with him on the pitch. There are plenty of examples of that happening in football clubs (Lineker at Everton?). He was bought to partner Torres, which made sense at the time. Torres and Suarez ahead of Gerrard – didn’t that sound delicious? But we never had it and the plan was radically altered. Given such a change, we should have pulled out of the Suarez purchase – if there were errors during that transfer window, yes it was paying too much for Carroll, but more than that it was continuing with the purchase of a player intended for a different attacking line and a different management. I like the little fella a lot. He's a wonder to watch. But Suarez is a finesse player who doesn’t gel with our set-up, Carroll is a Toshack who seems much more likely. They’re not ever going to fit together. That’s not their fault. But Carroll has a lot to bring in time. He needs patience, and he needs a Keegan.
