Andy Carroll says these are ‘exciting times’ for West Ham United after helping his Club to celebrate a very Happy New Year.
The No9 headed in his second goal in as many matches to inspire the Hammers to a deserved 2-0 Barclays Premier League win over Liverpool at the Boleyn Ground.
Having kicked-off 2016 with another impressive display, another goal and another victory, Carroll says the manager, staff and squad are looking onwards and upwards in the New Year.
“It’s great for the team to get another win after so many draws,” the England centre forward told West Ham TV. “That’s two back-to-back wins which is fantastic and two goals for me, which is obviously even better for me personally.
“It’s nice that the manager was pleased with my performance. I put a shift in and so did all the lads and he’s just delighted with the three points, as is everyone.
“I got another 90 minutes under my belt and it’s much better than training. You can only get match-fitness through games and I’m feeling good. Obviously some of the other lads are coming back and getting the match minutes they need, like Dimitri did with 30 minutes, so that’s great for him as well.”
Carroll’s goal – West Ham’s second ten minutes after half-time following Michail Antonio’s first-half opener – was a trademark header.
The big man rose above not only the Reds defence but also teammate Enner Valencia, who wisely got out of the way for the striker to power past Simon Mignolet.
“We had a laugh about it in the dressing room after!” Carroll recalled. “I called for it and he knew I was there and he got out the way, or else he was going to get clattered! It was obviously better for him that he got out the way and we got the goal!
“Michail finds himself in great positions and we were saying ‘How does he end up there?’ because he shouldn’t even have been there, but the he found himself in a great position and it was a thunderbolt of a header.”
With a win, West Ham rose above Liverpool into the Barclays Premier League’s top six, and with Dimitri Payet returning to action as a substitute and others nearly their own returns, what is Carroll’s assessment of the Hammers’ chances of a strong 2016?
“We’re a very good team. We’ve got a lot of good players coming back from injury and even when they were injured we weren’t losing games. We were drawing and being unlucky, because we could have nicked them.
“The squad is great, the manager is great and the staff are great, and everyone’s enjoying it and that’s the most important thing.
“Everyone is just looking at the next game. There is so much talk about the league table and that, but we just focus on the next game. The manager keeps us grounded and looking at the next opponents and that’s what we’ve been doing.
“It’s very exciting. Obviously 2016 is the last year in this ground. Moving to a massive stadium in the summer is exciting times for the Club and all the lads.”
The No9 headed in his second goal in as many matches to inspire the Hammers to a deserved 2-0 Barclays Premier League win over Liverpool at the Boleyn Ground.
Having kicked-off 2016 with another impressive display, another goal and another victory, Carroll says the manager, staff and squad are looking onwards and upwards in the New Year.
“It’s great for the team to get another win after so many draws,” the England centre forward told West Ham TV. “That’s two back-to-back wins which is fantastic and two goals for me, which is obviously even better for me personally.
“It’s nice that the manager was pleased with my performance. I put a shift in and so did all the lads and he’s just delighted with the three points, as is everyone.
“I got another 90 minutes under my belt and it’s much better than training. You can only get match-fitness through games and I’m feeling good. Obviously some of the other lads are coming back and getting the match minutes they need, like Dimitri did with 30 minutes, so that’s great for him as well.”
Carroll’s goal – West Ham’s second ten minutes after half-time following Michail Antonio’s first-half opener – was a trademark header.
The big man rose above not only the Reds defence but also teammate Enner Valencia, who wisely got out of the way for the striker to power past Simon Mignolet.
“We had a laugh about it in the dressing room after!” Carroll recalled. “I called for it and he knew I was there and he got out the way, or else he was going to get clattered! It was obviously better for him that he got out the way and we got the goal!
“Michail finds himself in great positions and we were saying ‘How does he end up there?’ because he shouldn’t even have been there, but the he found himself in a great position and it was a thunderbolt of a header.”
With a win, West Ham rose above Liverpool into the Barclays Premier League’s top six, and with Dimitri Payet returning to action as a substitute and others nearly their own returns, what is Carroll’s assessment of the Hammers’ chances of a strong 2016?
“We’re a very good team. We’ve got a lot of good players coming back from injury and even when they were injured we weren’t losing games. We were drawing and being unlucky, because we could have nicked them.
“The squad is great, the manager is great and the staff are great, and everyone’s enjoying it and that’s the most important thing.
“Everyone is just looking at the next game. There is so much talk about the league table and that, but we just focus on the next game. The manager keeps us grounded and looking at the next opponents and that’s what we’ve been doing.
“It’s very exciting. Obviously 2016 is the last year in this ground. Moving to a massive stadium in the summer is exciting times for the Club and all the lads.”