Andy Carroll: return imminent

Andy Carroll should be back in action within "a couple of weeks", according to Sam Allardyce.

The England striker has been out of action since the end of November and was initially expected to be sidelined until the beginning of February.

However according to Allardyce, the 23-year-old - who is on loan at the Boleyn Ground until the end of the season - should be back in contention for a first team spot within a fortnight.

"It's difficult to put an actual timescale on it, but I would expect it would be no longer than a couple of weeks now," Allardyce, speaking to the press ahead of the trip to Sunderland, said.

"He is doing some straight-line running and has been doing that for a few days. If he doesn't feel anything, then we'll progress onto interval running and some change of direction work and then introduce the ball.

"Then he'll hopefully come back, with the other players, as quickly as possible. It could be a few days or it could be a bit longer than that, depending on his progression. We're assessing him day-by-day now."

Allardyce also revealed that there were no set dates for the return of Mo Diame, George McCartney or Joey O'Brien - although the former is also expected to challenge for a first team place within the next two weeks.