West Ham target man Andy Carroll has been linked with a move to champions Chelsea this month.
West Ham United manager David Moyes has claimed in his London Evening Standard column that target man Andy Carroll will miss the rest of January and could be forced to undergo an operation.
The 29-year-old striker was used for just five minutes during the 1-1 draw against Tottenham before being left out of the squad that beat Huddersfield 4-1 last weekend, after picking up an ankle injury against West Bromwich Albion.
The England international scored twice against the Baggies, with a 94th-minute winner earning a 2-1 win. But Carroll’s goals could come at a cost as the former Liverpool and Newcastle striker is now likely to be out for a sustained period.
Moyes claimed he may even have to go under the knife to correct the problem, which subsequently rules him out of a move to Premier League champions Chelsea who have been widely reported as interested in the Hammers striker.
“What may defuse much of the speculation [Carroll to Chelsea rumours] is that the ankle injury Andy picked up against West Brom is sufficiently serious,” Moyes said.
“He will not be able to play again this month anyway and it could even need an operation to put things right, although that has not yet been confirmed.”
Carroll’s reputation of proneness to injury has dogged his five-year stay at West Ham, allowing him to make just 128 appearances in all competitions for the Hammers. He has a goalscoring ratio of one in every four, with 32 strikes.
Although the injury is set to rule the powerful attacker out of action, it also rules him out of a move to Chelsea as he will be unable to complete a medical which could come as good news to fans that wanted Carroll to stay.
He will be replaced by one of the likes of Javier Hernandez, Andre Ayew or Marko Arnautovic on Saturday, as the Hammers go up against Bournemouth at the London Stadium.
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