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New York Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Can Hugo Ekitike be the No 9 Liverpool have lacked since Fernando Torres?
The first goal is a piece of typical centre-forward play. Liverpool's No 9 drops a few yards from his marker and serves a winger, whose pass is met by an onrushing midfielder. The No 9 heaves himself to the edge of the six-yard box and makes it 1-0. Later in the game, he scores again from almost the same position, needing only one touch to fire a shot into the roof of the net. The result at Molineux is Wolverhampton Wanderers 0 Liverpool 3 and the date is January 22, 2011. The player in red with an illustrious number printed on his back is Fernando Torres; the last classic Liverpool No 9 brought to the club to score goals, and to prove an unqualified successful signing. #OnThisDay 2011 #WolvesLiverpool 🔴⚽⚽🔥@LFC #OTD #TorresLegacy #TBTorres — Fernando Torres (@Torres) January 22, 2020 Hugo Ekitike is the latest to try and break that trend, as Liverpool edge closer to formally confirming his arrival in a deal that could be worth up to £79million. Liverpool are not the only major club to have struggled to find a centre-forward to lean on consistently — Arsenal have struggled to fill the position in recent years while Chelsea have never really replaced Didier Drogba (with the possible exception of Diego Costa). Advertisement One who tried and failed to do just that was, of course, Torres, who left Liverpool nine days after his brace against Wolves in a record £50million ($57.7m) deal. His replacement at Anfield, Andy Carroll, who signed from Newcastle United for £35m, was a No 9 in a traditional sense because, well, you could not exactly miss him. He would deliver key moments for Liverpool, two of them against Everton, ensuring fewer bad words are said about him, but 18 months after his arrival, he was moved out, initially on loan before eventually joining West Ham United in June 2013 for £15m. Iago Aspas was the next No 9 but it was difficult to determine which sort of forward he really was because he barely played, and when he did, he scored only once: against third-tier Oldham Athletic in a third-round FA Cup tie in 2014. He lasted only a season, as did Rickie Lambert, the boyhood Liverpudlian who failed to register a goal at Anfield before sloping off to West Bromwich Albion in 2015. Around this period, Liverpool had Daniel Sturridge and, before Lambert's arrival, Luis Suarez, the Uruguay forward, who, it should be remembered, was originally brought in to supplement Torres. Instead, Suarez and Sturridge became a partnership, and each was worth every penny Liverpool paid for them because they became stars in their own right. But were they No 9s in the truest sense? Suarez's goalscoring record in his last campaign at the club (31 goals in 33 Premier League games in 2013-14) would suggest he was, but his best work, like Sturridge's, was in the channels. Judged against history, they were more Kenny Dalglish than Ian Rush, the club's all-time leading marksman. After Lambert, there was Christian Benteke, who arrived in July 2015 from Aston Villa for £32.5m, the third wearer of the No 9 shirt to last only a season. Under Brendan Rodgers' management, Benteke's job was to operate in central areas and stay high up the pitch. But Rodgers' successor, Jurgen Klopp, wanted something different. Advertisement Roberto Firmino would become Liverpool's No 9 but he did not join as one in July 2015 and, across eight years, his role was not easy to define. Rather than putting the finishing touches to Liverpool's moves, he was instead an orchestrator of their best play, giving others the opportunity to score more than him. Darwin Nunez, who in June 2022 arrived from Benfica for a fee rising to a club-record £85m, would take Firmino's shirt but his troubles in front of goal mean he has not established himself as a first pick and is likely to leave this summer. There have been other contenders since Torres. Divock Origi scored in a Champions League final even if others were always ahead of him. But for a short period following Klopp's arrival, he ended up playing wide as much as he did in the centre. The late Diogo Jota undoubtedly proved himself as a pure No 9, with Jamie Carragher saying last year that he considered him to be the best finisher at the club ahead of even Mohamed Salah. But Jota, for all his obvious gifts, did not join Liverpool as a No 9 in 2020: he had played more from the left for Wolverhampton Wanderers, where Liverpool spotted his potential as a goalscorer. Last season, Arne Slot won the Premier League despite not having a settled centre-forward, with the responsibility shifting according to availability between Jota, Nunez and Luis Diaz. Though Ekitike has played in wider areas for Reims and Paris Saint-Germain, it is likely he will now slip into that role, having scored 15 Bundesliga goals last season, mainly playing through the middle for Eintracht Frankfurt. Omar Marmoush scored the same amount — but the Egypt forward left the club for Manchester City halfway through the campaign. Slot has spoken before about 'multi-functional' forwards, but surely he knows that when you spend north of £80m on a player who has done reasonably well for goals in another top league, he will be judged primarily by the same metric at Anfield. Advertisement It will be interesting to see which number Ekitike inherits because the No 9 will only become available once it is inevitable Nunez is leaving and, aside from Firmino, three other players have not had much luck with it since Torres. Lambert has since spoken not only about the weight of the shirt but also the number as well as the actual position, because he felt as though everyone relied on him, especially after Suarez's departure. Lambert's interest in the club started when Rush was leading the line with the No 9 on his back, and this explains why it was so difficult for so many to initially get their head around the idea that Firmino was not just there to score goals, even though Rush forged a lot of opportunities for himself because, like Firmino, he was a hard worker and an an outstanding presser. Ekitike, though, is not Firmino. He is leaner and quicker, the sort of striker to play off the shoulder of the last defender. His reckoning will come when he is one-on-one with the goalkeeper, very much like Torres. (Top photos: Getty)
Scottish Sun
3 days ago
- Sport
- Scottish Sun
Andy Carroll had ‘6 or 7 bigger clubs' chasing him for ‘more money' as he reveals why he chose Dagenham and Redbridge
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) ANDY CARROLL has revealed he could have been playing at a higher level before signing for Dagenham and Redbridge. The former Premier League striker joined the sixth-tier side on a three-year contract after leaving Bordeaux. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 2 Andy Carroll joined Dagenham and Redbridge despite interest from bigger clubs Credit: Getty 2 He will now play just 10 miles from his old club West Ham Credit: Getty Images - Getty Carroll, 36, has already made his first appearance for the club in a pre-season friendly against League Two outfit Crawley Town. The match was not a dream return to England as Dagenham were thrashed 5-1. However, he has admitted that he had offers from at least half a dozen clubs that play at a higher level. The striker has also insisted that his decision was made after speaking to the Daggers' owners and manager. READ MORE ON FOOTBALL END OF THE WORLD Man Utd, Man City and Liverpool STRIPPED of status as world champions He told The Athletic: "From the first meeting with the manager (Lee Bradbury), I just knew it was the right club. "I had probably six or seven clubs on the phone at higher levels, driving distance from home, and more money, but for me, it was the whole package of the club. "I could speak to the owners, and they'd tell me what the future was going to look like. "I could also speak to the manager, and he could tell me what it would be like. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS "I just felt like I wanted to be part of it." His move to Dagenham sees him land just 10 miles away from his old stomping ground, the London Stadium. Footballer Andy Carroll signing for Dagenham and Redbridge FC Carroll spent seven years at West Ham after joining the club from Liverpool - where he was once a £35million signing from Newcastle. During his prime, he earned nine caps for England and scored two goals, including a header at Euro 2012 against Sweden. Now, Carroll has taken on a player-owner role at Dagenham, which has recently been taken over by a Qatari-led investment group.
The Sun
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Andy Carroll had ‘6 or 7 bigger clubs' chasing him for ‘more money' as he reveals why he chose Dagenham and Redbridge
ANDY CARROLL has revealed he could have been playing at a higher level before signing for Dagenham and Redbridge. The former Premier League striker joined the sixth-tier side on a three-year contract after leaving Bordeaux. 2 2 Carroll, 36, has already made his first appearance for the club in a pre-season friendly against League Two outfit Crawley Town. The match was not a dream return to England as Dagenham were thrashed 5-1. However, he has admitted that he had offers from at least half a dozen clubs that play at a higher level. The striker has also insisted that his decision was made after speaking to the Daggers' owners and manager. He told The Athletic: "From the first meeting with the manager (Lee Bradbury), I just knew it was the right club. "I had probably six or seven clubs on the phone at higher levels, driving distance from home, and more money, but for me, it was the whole package of the club. "I could speak to the owners, and they'd tell me what the future was going to look like. "I could also speak to the manager, and he could tell me what it would be like. JOIN SUN VEGAS: GET £50 BONUS "I just felt like I wanted to be part of it." His move to Dagenham sees him land just 10 miles away from his old stomping ground, the London Stadium. Footballer Andy Carroll signing for Dagenham and Redbridge FC Carroll spent seven years at West Ham after joining the club from Liverpool - where he was once a £35million signing from Newcastle. During his prime, he earned nine caps for England and scored two goals, including a header at Euro 2012 against Sweden. Now, Carroll has taken on a player-owner role at Dagenham, which has recently been taken over by a Qatari-led investment group. Andy Carroll's career path Andy Carroll's meteoric rise might not have lived up to expectations, but it has been a career full of twists and turns 2006 - Begins to break through with the senior team as a teenager at Newcastle 2011 - Joins Liverpool for a club record fee of £35million 201 2 - Leaves Liverpool for West Ham loan before joining permanently for just £15million 2019 - Returns to Newcastle after a long but inconsistent spell in East London 2021 - Joins Reading following the expiry of his Newcastle contract 2022 - Leaves Reading for a short spell with West Brom, but quickly returns to the Royals 2023 - Moves abroad for the first time in his career with second division French side Amiens SC 2024 - Makes headlines by joining fourth-tier French side Bordeaux following their relegation over financial issues, plays for less than minimum wage 2025 - Departs Bordeaux amicably and returns to English football with Dagenham and Redbridge
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Andy Carroll opens up on shock Dagenham and Redbridge move and why he turned down 'more money' from 'six or seven clubs at higher levels'
Andy Carroll has revealed the reasons behind his stunning decision to drop down to the sixth tier of English football - admitting he turned down lucrative offers from up to seven clubs at higher levels to join Dagenham and Redbridge. Last week, the former England and Premier League striker signed a three-year deal with the National League South side, also acquiring a minority ownership stake in the club. He had previously played for Bordeaux in the French fourth tier, where he became a fan favourite in his single campaign. The 36-year-old dropped down the divisions and took a huge pay cut, even revealing that he was losing money by playing for them. Now, Carroll has opened up on his decision to choose passion over money again by joining Dagenham. 'From the first meeting with the manager, I just knew it was the right club,' Carroll told The Athletic. 'I had probably six or seven clubs on the phone at higher levels, driving distance from home, and more money, but for me, it was the whole package of the club. 'I could speak to the owners, and they'd tell me what the future was going to look like. I could also speak to the manager, and he could tell me what it would be like. I just felt like I wanted to be part of it.' Regarding his aims with the east London club, the former Liverpool star added: 'I think the main thing that I would like to see is the academy set back up. 'If you've got 60,000 kids in the area under 16, you've got an opportunity. With West Ham around the corner, The Academy of Football, look at the players they've produced over the years. To get that up and running is key for the club - it's a necessity, really. 'You look at the club and you think it's got potential. It's 30 minutes into London on the train. It's a fantastic area. I could go to a League One (third division) or a Championship (second) team, and be mid-table and play bits and pieces, not really enjoying it, and float around. 'Or I could come here, start from the bottom, and have a project where I can work on the pitch and off the pitch to hopefully bring something fantastic to the club in the area.' Carroll started his career at Newcastle before earning a £35million switch to Liverpool in 2011. He played for England nine times, scoring at the 2012 Euros. Carroll also had spells at West Ham, West Brom, Reading and returned to Newcastle before moving to Amiens in September 2023. He stayed in France for the 2024-25 season, and scored 11 goals in 23 matches last season for Bordeaux, who finished fourth in the National 2, France's fourth division.
New York Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Why Andy Carroll has joined Dagenham & Redbridge: ‘This is a project, on and off the pitch'
Having spent two years in the lower leagues of French football, Andy Carroll has returned to familiar pastures — relatively speaking. The striker has joined sixth-tier English side Dagenham & Redbridge on a three-year contract — a surprising shift for the former England international, who was the most expensive British player ever when he left hometown club Newcastle United for Liverpool for £35million (then $55m) in the summer of 2011. Advertisement Carroll subsequently spent seven years at West Ham United, whose London Stadium is approximately 10 miles from Dagenham's Chigwell Construction Stadium, and his children live in the area, making this move a logical fit geographically. His seasons in France's fourth division with Amiens and then Bordeaux, during the latter of which he says he spent more than he earned, indicate that money is not a priority as he enters the twilight of a near two-decade playing career. Still, a former England international joining a non-League club at age 36 is highly unusual, particularly as Carroll had more lucrative and potentially professionally challenging offers on the table from higher up the English footballing ladder. 'From the first meeting with the manager, I just knew it was the right club,' Carroll tells The Athletic. 'I had probably six or seven clubs on the phone at higher levels, driving distance from home, and more money, but for me, it was the whole package of the club. I could speak to the owners, and they'd tell me what the future was going to look like. I could also speak to the manager, and he could tell me what it would be like. I just felt like I wanted to be part of it.' Just three days after completing the move, Dagenham fans got a first sight of the east London club's headline summer transfer on Tuesday in their first pre-season friendly, against Crawley Town. People arrived early to watch Carroll warm up with his new team-mates on the pitch, and waited pitchside for his autograph. One, who brought a West Ham shirt with Carroll's name and No 9 on the back, said 'That's mental, innit. Andy Carroll,' to his friends after the nine-cap international signed that top before heading down the tunnel to prepare for the match. Carroll came on in the second half with his team 2-1 down to Crawley, who play in League Two, two divisions above Dagenham. The 6ft 4in (193cm) striker made an immediate impression, wrestling with the visitors' defenders and competing for flick-ons, while showing the touch and composure of a former Premier League and international footballer. Advertisement Crawley, part-owned by NBA team Philadelphia 76ers' president of basketball operations Daryl Morey as part of the WAGMI United crypto sports brand, eventually ran out 5-1 winners. Still, the fans, who chanted Carroll's name throughout the match, continued singing it and waited after full time to get a picture with the highest-profile signing in their club's history. However, Carroll has not just signed to score the goals for Dagenham to win promotion back to the National League, after they suffered relegation on the final day of last season. He has joined their new ownership team — a Qatari private investment consortium whose identities have not yet been disclosed. 'I think the main thing that I would like to see is the academy set back up,' says Carroll, whose three-year deal is an anomaly in the lower leagues, where one or two-year contracts are more common. 'If you've got 60,000 kids in the area under 16, you've got an opportunity. With West Ham around the corner, The Academy of Football, look at the players they've produced over the years. To get that up and running is key for the club — it's a necessity, really. 'You look at the club and you think it's got potential. It's 30 minutes into London on the train. It's a fantastic area. I could go to a League One (third division) or a Championship (second) team, and be mid-table and play bits and pieces, not really enjoying it, and float around. Or I could come here, start from the bottom, and have a project where I can work on the pitch and off the pitch to hopefully bring something fantastic to the club in the area.' The new ownership group, described as 'prominent Qatari investors' on the club website, has appointed Youseph Al Sharif as interim chairman. He is supported by Anwar Uddin, who spent four years at the club as a player between 2006 and 2010 and has now returned as a non-executive director. According to the club, 'they will be joined on the board by investors bringing extensive expertise in football data and finance'. In the grand scheme, it's not all that long ago when Dagenham were one of those EFL clubs Carroll may have overlooked this summer for a more fulfilling project. Formed in 1992 following a merger between semi-professional clubs Dagenham and Redbridge Forest, they reached their highest point in the 2010-11 season, when they played in League One. Advertisement They lasted just one year in the third tier but stayed in the EFL until 2015-16, when they were relegated to the National League, remaining at that level until a 21st-place finish in May condemned them to the regional, and largely semi-professional, National League South. While the club were achieving their highest peak, the town they call home was firmly in the national spotlight for political reasons. Dagenham, which was historically part of Essex before becoming part of Greater London in 1968, is perhaps best known for its Ford car factory, which employed more than 40,000 people and was the area's economic backbone. However, as heavy industry declined in the late 20th century, Ford began moving its operations to other locations around the world, and the town's job market was significantly affected. This coincided with the rise of the British National Party, a far-right, fascist organisation which established a stronghold in the area. In 2006, 12 BNP councillors were elected in the borough of Barking and Dagenham, which preceded its best performance in a UK general election in 2010, when it secured 563,743 votes nationwide (1.9 per cent of the total). Michael Barnbrook, the BNP candidate for the Dagenham and Rainham constituency, secured 4,952 votes, representing 11.2 per cent of the vote (a significantly higher proportion than the national average) and a 6.8 per cent increase from the previous election. Although the projections that it would be the first constituency to elect a candidate from the now largely inactive but once-influential party were never fulfilled, Dagenham's reputation persists. In the 2024 General Election, Reform UK — a right-wing populist party led by Nigel Farage, one of the most prominent voices behind the previous decade's Brexit campaign — secured the second-largest share of the vote in the constituency, trailing only Labour. It's a town in need of something to celebrate, and a rush of new signings — including Ashley Hemmings, who scored 30 goals in 47 matches in the fifth tier last season for Kidderminster Harriers, and a new manager in former Manchester City and Crystal Palace striker Lee Bradbury — are injecting fresh energy into a club with plenty of potential, as Carroll points out. However, recent ownership changes have promised much and delivered little, so many Dagenham fans are sceptical that their fortunes will change overnight. 'There was a lot of controversy with the new owners last summer,' says Kieran, a 20-year-old supporter who regularly attends Dagenham matches with his father. 'Our club captain (Elliot Justham) was supposedly guaranteed a new contract and he never got it, so he left mid-season. Then, a couple of months ago, there was the introduction of new Egyptian owners, I think they were YouTubers, but there was a thing with them apparently supporting Hamas, so it all kicked off.' Advertisement Ahead of the 2024-25 season, Club Underdog, a subsidiary of America's North Sixth Group, which also owns Italian Serie C team Campobasso FC and U.S. women's team Brooklyn FC, completed a takeover of Dagenham & Redbridge. Much was made of their success in achieving a double promotion with Campobasso, and fans were optimistic that they'd have a similar effect on a club that'd been stuck in mid-table in the National League for several seasons. Instead, in their sole year in charge, they took the club down to the sixth tier — the first time Dagenham had been out of England's top five divisions this century. As for the 'Egyptian owners' saga, that involved YouTube personality and entrepreneur Marwan Serry, who announced his stake in the ownership on Monday April 14, claiming it was his ambition to make them 'the most famous club for Arabs' and ended by the Saturday of that same week, after controversy surrounding historical Instagram posts relating to the Israel-Gaza conflict from fellow Egyptian influencer Salma Mashhour, who joined the club at the same time as the director of development & engagement. A few months later, Dagenham is back in the news again with promises of a new dawn at its football club. The atmosphere at Tuesday night's match demonstrates there is genuine excitement in the fanbase, and with what looks like one of the strongest squads in the division, the expectation both on the terraces and among the players is that they achieve promotion at the first time of asking. 'We want to get up the leagues,' says Carroll. 'I think the most important thing right now is to get the team together. I think there are more than 50 per cent fresh faces. We have to work hard with the manager to deliver what he wants, hopefully get promoted this year, and then we'll go from there. Get the football right on the pitch and everything around it will start building.'
