LONDON
Brendan
Rodgers admits he fears a fired-up Andy Carroll could wreck Liverpool's
title challenge when the West Ham striker faces his former club on
Sunday.
Rodgers quickly decided Carroll wasn't part of
his plans when he took over at Anfield in 2012 and shipped the towering
forward out on loan to the Hammers just two months later.
The
Reds boss felt Carroll's physical style wouldn't be a good fit with his
pass and move philosophy and his eventual sale for £15 million ($25m,
18m euros) has proved a wise decision.
While Rodgers's
rebuilding of Liverpool's forward line with Luis Suarez and Daniel
Sturridge has transformed the team into surprise contenders for the
Premier League crown, Carroll has struggled to stay fit for much of his
time with West Ham.
But now Carroll stands directly in
the path of Rodgers's road to immortality as Liverpool head to Upton
Park within touching distance of winning the title for the first time
since 1990.
Liverpool have surged to the top of the
table on the back of some brilliant attacking play and held a two-point
lead over second placed Chelsea going into the weekend.
Chelsea could regain first place if they beat Stoke on Saturday, but the destiny of the title remains in Liverpool's hands.
LONG WAIT
If
the Reds win their last six matches they will finally end their long
wait to be crowned champions for the first time since the glory days of
John Barnes and Ian Rush.
With so much at stake, it was
hardly surprising that Rodgers, keen to avoid unnecessarily angering
Carroll, was determined to play down talk of a rift with the England
international when asked if his jilted former player would be motivated
to make a point on Sunday.
"Andy wasn't let go from here because he wasn't good enough -- I'll state that first and foremost," Rodgers said.
"He is wonderful in the air, has a good touch in and around the box, so he certainly has nothing to prove to Liverpool.
"I think he is one of the best players in Europe in how he plays -- that style of attacking the ball in the air is outstanding.
"When
I came in here, everyone knew the way I worked and it was never to say
Andy couldn't work that way, but we had other certain financial aspects
of the football club we had to look at.
"He needed to play and I think he has gone on and done great for West Ham.
"When he has been fit he has shown he is one of the top strikers playing in that style of football West Ham play.
"Andy
wanted to play because he had spent the 12 to 18 months beforehand not
playing regularly, so this was a chance for him to do that and he has
taken that really well."
Carroll bagged just his second
goal of another injury-ravaged season in Monday's win at Sunderland as
the Hammers eased their relegation fears and lifted the mood after fans
jeered boss Sam Allardyce during a recent home victory over Hull.
But
Liverpool have been in red-hot form of late, winning their last eight
matches and scoring 30 goals in the process to underline their title
credentials.
And Allardyce concedes that taking on a Suarez and Sturridge inspired Liverpool is a daunting proposition.
"At the moment the Liverpool team in terms of form and coupled with results are at 100 per cent," he said.
"Sometimes
you can be playing really well and not achieve results, but at the
moment, based on results and performances, they are the top team and are
now in the position they find themselves in.
"At the moment Suarez now finds himself in the top two or three players in the world.
"His
combination with Sturridge has flourished. The rest of the team is
providing service behind them and they've all grown in quality and
confidence."
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