Carroll could ride to rescue
ANDY CARROLL will play in a behindclosed-doors friendly this week as West Ham manager Manuel Pellegrini searches for some killer instinct in front of goal.
Javier Hernandez and Michail Antonio were released from the bench to complement Marko Arnautovic and Felipe Anderson – and Anderson duly drilled home the 73rd-minute finish that clinched a point. But the spoils could have been greater.
Oh for a fit and fully firing striker.
So Pellegrini will be an interested spectator on Thursday when Carroll plays against Brentford. “Andy is close to coming back. He has started working with the squad a little,” said Pellegrini. “He will work again this week and play a friendly.
“I will be watching the game. There will be no holiday during the international break.
“Maybe the following week Jack Wilshere will be working with the first-team squad too.”
West Ham rode their luck because when it comes to shots or headers against the woodwork, poor Huddersfield are top of the Premier League.
It is now 10 this season after strikes from Steve Mounie and Philip Billing rebounded to safety.
They had taken the lead through a sixth-minute Alex Pritchard strike and at least a draw meant four points in less than a week for David Wagner’s side after their first win of the season against Fulham last Monday. “The biggest problem – and even if it sounds boring – is an absence of luck,” said Wagner. “We’re top of the table in terms of hitting the post and the bar. You need luck in football and we haven’t had it.
“But we’re on the right path.”