Source: Daily_Mail
Andy Carroll insists mistakes are in the past
Based on the stories that have already emerged about Andy Carroll - some true, some perhaps not - the expectations were fairly low when it came to meeting him on Thursday.[LNB] He is an exciting prospect. No doubt about that. But he arrives in Liverpool with a reputation for downing as many pints in a night as he has brain cells. For finding the kind of trouble that could yet jeopardise his chances of realising that considerable potential. Never mind justifying his ?35million price-tag. [LNB] Welcome to Anfield: Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish shows off his new strikers Andy Carroll (far left) and LuisSuarez on Thursday [LNB]This, however, was not the Andy Carroll who introduced himself to the media at Anfield. He is young - just 22 - and there is a slightly startled look in his eyes that says he can hardly believe he is here. [LNB]Kenny Dalglish can see that vulnerability. 'He has an innocence that is endearing,' said the manager. But Dalglish was not in the room when the striker then tackled the inevitable questions from the written press - when he came across as rather more streetwise and a good deal brighter than many seem to have given him credit for.[LNB]At the double: Liverpool spent over ?57m signing Suarez and Carroll on deadline-day [LNB] Is he daunted by the prospect of making his Liverpool debut as the most expensive English footballer in history while wearing the No 9 shirt worn by names like Rush, Fowler, Hunt and, of course, Torres? Well no, not really.[LNB] 'It is a lot of money to spend,' he said respectfully. 'And I have only really had half a season in the Premier League. But that is the confidence the manager has in me and that is what I am here to repay. It is a big shock because everything happened on the last day of the transfer window. But I am here now and I am ready to get fit and then play.' [LNB]Fear, it would seem, is alien to him. After all, it was not Chris Hughton's idea to make him Newcastle's own iconic No 9 at the start of the season.[LNB] 'Watching Alan Shearer when I had a season ticket, that was the shirt I wanted when I was growing up,' said Carroll. 'I knew I'd done well the season before in the Championship and I thought I'd go in and ask for it.[LNB] 'I know I can play football, I know I can score goals, so I can handle the spotlight. I have been in the headlines for the wrong reasons and when I've been travelling to Sunday games, I've read the papers on the way and looked at all those headlines. But then I've scored the winner against Arsenal, so it shouldn't really bother me because I have proved I can score goals.[LNB] 'It has been a massive change in the last year or so: getting promoted, getting the No 9 shirt, getting in the England squad - and then coming to one of the world's greatest clubs. It's very different to playing in the Championship.[LNB] All smiles: Carroll is confident he can justify the hefty price-tag [LNB] 'It has been so fast and, thinking about it now, it does seem a very big change.' But does he need to change? Now he is a record signing and not just a local boy done good, does he not need to take better care of himself and cut down on the boozing? [LNB]'I don't mind a pint now and again, but that is the way I have been brought up,' he said. 'That's who I am and I am not really going to change. I am not.[LNB] 'I am just going to carry on playing my football, keep my head down and do it (drink) at the right time. I have made some mistakes in the past but they are all behind me. I have just got to move on.'[LNB] It might not be exactly what Liverpool want to hear. When you spend that kind of money on a player, you probably want him to morph into Gareth Bale and declare he cannot stand the taste. Luckily for Carroll, he is surrounded by some wise old heads. [LNB] Is that the way to Anfield? The former Newcastle striker completed his move on deadline-day [LNB]Jamie Carragher was much like Carroll as an emerging professional, until Gerard Houllier took him to one side and warned him of the dangers of alcohol. Carroll said his new team-mates had already told him they will be looking out for him in his new city. [LNB]That extends to Carragher getting behind Carroll and fellow new signing Luis Suarez, insisting Liverpool are better off without Fernando Torres, who moved to Chelsea for ?50m on Monday. [LNB]'We've got two young hungry lads who have got a lot to prove over the next few years and hopefully the two of them will be here for the next decade,' Carragher told talkSPORT.[LNB] 'It was probably better that Fernando moved on if he didn't 100 per cent want to be here.' [LNB]Torres is a tough act to follow, but Carroll is ready for the inevitable comparisons. 'I am aware that the spotlight's on me,' he said. 'Whoever it was, given the money they have spent, was going to be followed around. I have to take it in my stride. [LNB]'This is a great chance for me to come to a club like Liverpool and show what I can do. I've been at Newcastle all my life and I've shown what I can do there, but I'm sure I can prove it here as well.' [LNB]Injured for probably another month, he cannot wait to play at Anfield.'I came close once,' he said. 'I was ready to come off the bench when Joey Barton was sent off.' He hopes to make a more positive impact when he eventually gets on. [LNB]Javier Mascherano has defended Fernando Torres's decision to leave Liverpool for Chelsea. Argentina midfielder Mascherano, who faced a backlash when he left Anfield for Barcelona in the summer, said: 'It is sad that the people have to leave by the back door. The reality is that Liverpool didn't show interest in keeping us in the club. Fernando did his best.'[LNB] Andy Carroll unworried by pressure of club record ?35m price tag at LiverpoolFormer Liverpool midfielder Mascherano hits out at club over sale of Torres to Chelsea Hail king Luis! New boy Suarez helps Liverpool forget Fernando Angry Aldridge lays into 'fraud' Fernando for abandoning LiverpoolNolan: Liverpool have landed a world beater in my ?35m pal CarrollLiverpool FC news from across the web [LNB] Explore more:People: Jamie Carragher, Chris Hughton, Andy Carroll, Kenny Dalglish, Javier Mascherano, Fernando Torres, Gerard Houllier, Joey Barton, Alan Shearer Places: Newcastle, Barcelona, Liverpool, Argentina, United Kingdom
