Toon to unveil new number 9?
Posted on May 31st, 2010 | 172 Comments |
I am of course talking about the legendary number 9 shirt worn by club icons such Alan Shearer, Jackie Milburn and Hughie Gallacher.
It is a shirt that has remained vacant since the departure of Obafemi Martins around a year ago now, although Chris Hughton has dropped his strongest hint yet that our wait for a new number 9 could be over pretty shortly, and it we wont even need to go out and sign someone. Yes that’s right, Andy Carroll, number nine, come on down. The local lad looks set for the number nine jersey, which could be a masterstroke. I have talked before about what is required and expected from a number nine, and although Carroll is very much a rough diamond, I believe he will thrive under the pressure and expectation it can bring.
“It has yet to be decided. But the type of character that Andy is tells me he wouldn’t shy away from it if we hand it to him in July,” Hughton said. “He has got no fear and I think he would simply revel in the situation. He certainly will be a good candidate for it.”
“When you look at the greats who’ve worn it, it can be a burden for others, but I honestly don’t think it would be for Andy, he’s not that type of character.”
That pretty much ties in with my assessment of what Carroll would be like, and given the likelihood the we probably wont be signing anyone who deserves an immediate shot at becoming our next number nine, then why not give it to Carroll?
Questions were asked of Andy Carroll at the start of last season as he was thrust into a team in disarray. Would he be able to handle it? He showed he could, certainly in the air anyway, although it wasn’t until later on in the season that he really found his scoring boots. At Christmas, Carroll had just four goals to his name, compared to the 19 he had amassed by the end of the season. The improvement in him was visible and led to him being earmarked for a future England role. Hughton insists his progression must not stop there though:
“It gets even tougher now as we head to the top level. But everything we asked from him last season, he gave us. One of the areas was his goal ratio and the need to give us a good return, and he passed that test with flying colours with 19 goals.”
“He’s an exciting player and one we’re delighted to have. We’ll hopefully see an improvement. He’s a good age and next season is all about the next chapter for him.”
I hope we continue to see an improvement aswell, and I think the number nine shirt could be the spur he needs to improve further, and to avoid trouble off the pitch. And that is the next hurdle in the colourful yet still fledgling career of Andy Carroll.
This week signals the start of the Gateshead lads court case after an alleged incident at Blu Bamboo some months back. On the back of ‘glassjawgate’, it could be the last thing the striker needs. You can keep up to date with goings on here on NUFCblog.org as and when details become available.
If he can get through it, there is a number 9 shirt waiting for him to come back to.
NUFCBlog Author: toonsy
toonsy has written 643 articles on this blog.
no.he made his bed when he left so get stuffed. thanks but no thanks.