Carroll: West Ham second choice

A spokesman for Liverpool striker Andy Carroll has revealed that West Ham would be second in line to sign Andy Carroll should he be given a choice over which club to join.

Gateshead-born Carroll, who moved to Merseyside in January 2011 for a record-breaking £35million looks set to leave the club before the close of the current transfer window with new Anfield boss Brendan Rodgers having hinted that he doesn't see the 23-year-old as part of his long-term plans.

However West Ham - who continue to pursue the former Newcastle player - would be behind his former club in terms of where the player would like to spend the 2012/13 campaign.

"Andy is aware of West Ham’s interest," the unnamed 'friend' told chroniclelive.co.uk. "He’s still massive mates with Kevin Nolan and he respects his opinion from a football point of view.

"But his first choice if he did leave Liverpool would, of course, be Newcastle. If they can’t come up with the right bid, though, and he is going to be sitting on the bench at Liverpool, then he has to seriously consider West Ham."

Back in 2010, when both players mentioned by the source were employed by Newcastle, Carroll temporarily moved in with Nolan and his family after being bailed following an assault charge.

Speaking at the time, West Ham's current captain said: "Andy is a great lad to be around. He's always happy and smiling. He's had his fair share of trouble but didn't we all when we were that young?"

Since then, the two have remained great friends.