Andy Carroll Completes £35 Million Liverpool Move

If Newcastle wanted to ensure Carroll took the public relations hit rather than the fans, well, uh... good job:

Shirt burning is embarrassing behaviour, but I think this one just takes the cake. Nice work, Newcastle ‘fan’. At least the idiots burning the Torres jerseys actually managed to set theirs on fire.

Carroll signs a five-and-a-half year deal at Anfield and will wear the nine shirt. He joins Luis Suaréz as Liverpool’s new attacker, the Uruguayan completing his move from Ajax today.

Here is Liverpool’s full statement, as distributed on their web site just before the transfer window closed:

Shortly after Smith’s tweets, word of Liverpool’s confirmation broke, with the Guardian publishing confirmation near 5:30 p.m. England time:

Based on other reports being seen online, Carroll is on a private jet flying him from Tyne- to Merseyside.There the striker, already sidelined with a thigh injury, is expected to undergo a perfunctory medical with an eye toward being a Liverpool play by day’s end.

Carroll came up through Newcastle’s youth system and has scored 33 all-competition goals on Tyneside. That limited record, with no transfer fee to recoup, combined with a skill-set that forces you to question how much better this guy will actually get makes you wonder: If Newcastle won’t sell him now, for this offer, then when? And for how much?

At first blush, it seems Newcastle simply does not want to be pushed into a move. They’ll sell Carroll when they’re ready, something that might be influence by when Carroll forces a move. It’s a stance that’s consistent with the history of Newcastle United, and if that means turning down an incredible bid from Liverpool, then that also means persisting with the idea that Newcastle are above the pragmatism and realities that influence other clubs of their stature. Whether that’s true may depend on whether somebody’s willing to duplicate Liverpool’s £30 million bid at some point in the future.