FOOTBALL:ANDY CARROLL moved a step closer to the Anfield exit door when he was left out of the squad for their Euro qualifier.

 

The England striker was scheduled to travel to Belarus for the clash with FC Gomel — Brendan Rodgers’ first competitive game as Liverpool boss.
But Carroll picked up a slight groin strain in training 24 hours earlier and Rodgers chose not to risk him in tonight’s Europa League third-round qualifier.
The setback could seriously jeopardise Rodgers’ chances of offloading the Geordie.
But West Ham are still trying to tempt the player into moving south in a £2million season-long loan deal — plus the commitment to a permanent £17m switch if they stay up.
The Hammers are also ready to offer Carroll, 23, £90,000 a week, although former club Newcastle remain in the hunt too.

UEFA rules mean Carroll could play for Liverpool in the qualifiers and still turn out for the Toon in the competition proper, should they come through a play-off.
But Rodgers is unwilling to gamble the prospects of getting rid of a player, who does not fit into his long-term plans, against a side the Reds should overcome without too much difficulty.

Carroll’s absence — plus the loss of Luis Suarez and Craig Bellamy to Olympic duty — mean Rodgers is likely to hand a quick-fire debut to Italian new boy Fabio Borini.
Tonight’s game comes just four days after Liverpool returned from their North American tour, yet rather than seeing it as a disruption to pre-season plans, Rodgers reckons it is the biggest game of his life.

The new Kop boss, appointed after working wonders at Swansea, said: “Maybe over the history of the club, this will not be one of the most glamorous games but, for me, it will mean everything.
“Taking a team into Europe, one that has conquered Europe for many years, and to go in there and compete is everything for me.
“This club has so much history, it won’t be taken lightly. It is a European competition, it’s the UEFA Cup, and if anyone ever has a chance to win that... you never know. The last time this club won it was the cup ‘treble’ in 2001.
“I’m sure when they won it there was a real sense of achievement, and for me it is an important competition.
“If you are prioritising, then of course the Premier League is something we want to do well in. But I want to manage and navigate my way around this.
“I want to make sure the players are fit enough but also that we are strong enough — which I believe we will be — to do well in it.”
Steven Gerrard is likely to feature at some stage, while Joe Cole, back after a season’s loan at Lille, is set for his first competitive Reds game in nearly 15 months.
Rodgers added: “Of course it is difficult because it is still part of pre-season and I will still have to be careful who I play.
“I cannot afford to be losing key players because of the lack of numbers in the group to injury. But I believe we have got enough good ones here to get through these early rounds.”