ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE: KENNY DALGLISH has dismissed criticism of Andy Carroll's lifestyle as "totally unfair" and insisted there is no concern at Liverpool over the striker's form or drinking habits.
Carroll has been left out of the starting line-up by both club and country in the past fortnight and his omission from the England sides that faced Bulgaria and began the game against Wales was accompanied by a warning over alcohol consumption from Fabio Capello.
Dalglish took issue with the media rather than the England manager as he defended his €40m signing from Newcastle United, arguing it was an old story blown out of proportion despite Capello reiterating his doubts only this week.
The England manager said on Monday: “Andy needs to be careful. I don’t know anything about his lifestyle. It is a private problem that I never spoke about. But if he wants to be a good player and a good sportsman, he needs to drink less than the others. He is not at the top of his form at the moment.”
The Liverpool manager does not intend to contact Capello about his latest public pronouncements on Carroll. The Scot is adamant, however, that injury, not drink, is the cause of the 22-year-old’s slow start to his Anfield career. “He has not done too badly for us,” Dalglish said.
“We don’t have any problem whatsoever with Andy. We are delighted to have him here and he will be fantastic asset for us. As I have said before, last year it was our fault that we played him when we should not have done.”
As for the reservations aired by Capello, the Liverpool manager denied they could create a rift with the centre-forward. He said: “Andy is very appreciative of advice from anybody who has a standing in football. I think he is appreciative of Fabio Capello’s advice because he respects Fabio Capello, and I think Fabio Capello has great respect for Andy Carroll.
“We have said often enough that Andy wasn’t properly fit last season because of a knee injury but that seems to fall on deaf ears.
“We have been very pleased with the level of fitness he has achieved this season. You don’t know what his lifestyle is like. Who knows his lifestyle? I don’t think Andy’s lifestyle is anything like what you would like it to be to get stories.”
Dalglish added: “I think it’s unfair to discuss Andy any further than we have done already. It’s totally unfair on him. Everyone wants to talk about it but we have said what we have had to say.”
Dalglish reported no fresh injury problems following the international break. Charlie Adam is available for Saturday’s trip to Stoke despite missing Scotland’s win over Lithuania with a hip problem and Glen Johnson is in contention for his first league appearance of the season having recovered from a hamstring strain. Johnson’s return is well-timed, as Martin Kelly is sidelined with a hamstring problem of his own.
“Charlie should be all right for the game,” Dalglish said. “I think it was right what Craig Levein did in not playing him on Tuesday. To get him back was commendable of Craig Levein. Glen Johnson is training alongside us again now and Steven Gerrard is getting closer every day, so everything on the injury front seems to be pretty positive for us at the moment.”
Guardian Service
