West Brom striker Andy Carroll is ‘best header of generation’ – Joesph Masi
West Brom have got themselves a highly effective player in Andy Carroll who has a specific skill set very few professional footballers possess.
The 33-year-old stands at six-foot, four-inches tall and has a leap like a salmon which makes him a highly potent threat in the air both defensively and in attack.
We are yet to see the Gateshead-born striker show off his absolute best aerial ability in the navy and white of West Brom but it will surely only be a matter of time before he dazzles at The Hawthorns.
Express and Star journalist Joseph Masi has even gone as far to say that Carroll is the best header of a football in his generation on the Baggies Broadcast this week.
“Andy Carroll is probably the best header of the ball in my generation,” Masi said. “Certainly, in terms of English footballers, I cannot think of a player who can head the ball better than Andy Carroll.
“I think he is number one; if I was making a machine of footballers, the perfect player, I would want Andy Carroll’s heading ability.”
Play to his strengths
We’re not going to see the very best of Carroll unless Steve Bruce decides to play to his strengths and go extremely direct from back to front.
Fancy tiki-taka football won’t see Carroll make the kind of impact everyone knows he can but Albion have started to find form all of a sudden and that might harm his chances of a start.
Having said that, the big target man is the dream player to bring on late in games no matter the scores on the doors.
If you’re winning, on he comes to not only hold up the ball when the defenders clear it, but he is another massive player who can head crosses away from set-pieces.
If you’re needing a goal, get him on and bring out the big diagonal balls. He’ll knock them down and then get himself into the box, ready to power home a cross from one of his own teammates.
It’s the brilliant win-win scenario that a very dominant aerial figure possesses and Bruce has to harness that in Carroll.
In other West Brom news, Ally Robertson has had his say on the Baggies with Saturday’s trip to Bristol City on the horizon.
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