'I Never Wanted to Join Liverpool - I Wanted to Fail Medical'

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Former England striker Andy Carroll has revealed that he didn't want to sign for Liverpool in 2011.

Former England striker Andy Carroll has revealed that he didn't want to sign for Liverpool back in 2011 and was forced into the move by Newcastle United .

The now 37-year-old became the Reds' record signing when he completed the switch from Tyneside to Merseyside 15 years ago in the January transfer window. The move materialised after he'd scored 11 goals in 20 appearances in the first half of the 2010/11 season for the Magpies, although he subsequently went on to net just 11 in his 58 outings at Anfield.

His spell in the north-west didn't pan out as he and the Liverpool supporters would've hoped, and he's now revealed in a stunning admission that he never wanted the move in the first place.

This revelation was made in his new book, 'Owning it', which also detailed the striker being the victim of sexual assault by a male celebrity, and has sparked a potential legal row with Wayne Rooney after Carroll alleged that the former Manchester United man regularly invited players to his room for a beer and a cigarette after England matches.

Born in Gateshead near Newcastle, Carroll developed through the Magpies' academy before bursting into the first team at the age of 17. He quickly established himself as a mainstay in the Tynesiders' team, and by the time January 2011 rolled around, he was one of the brightest young strikers on the market.

Liverpool opted to break their transfer record for Carroll, who made the move across the country despite it being against his wishes.

In his new book, the forward revealed that Newcastle forced him to hand in a transfer request, threatening him with being ostracised from the first-team picture if he didn't.

"After landing in Liverpool, we went straight to Anfield, where I had my medical," Carroll wrote, per the Daily Mail .

> "I kept thinking, 'Please just fail this, and you can go home.' But I passed with flying colours. Newcastle had me over a barrel, and I later learned that me putting in a transfer request meant that Newcastle got to keep 10% of the £35 million fee that otherwise would have gone to me."

> "The first thing I did after signing was phone my mom and dad. They were less upset that I'd left Newcastle for Liverpool than the fact I hadn't discussed it with them. 'You need to pick up the cat,' I said. And that was that."

Carroll then went on to describe how he looked like he wanted to cry when being unveiled as a Liverpool player alongside Luis Suarez . He claimed that he forced himself to explain that he was happy to be on Merseyside.

> "I was desperate to tell everyone what had really gone on in all its gory detail, but I thought it best to keep a lid on it."

> "I didn't want Liverpool and their fans to think I hated the idea of being there, especially as they'd shelled out so much for me and handed me the number 9 shirt as worn by Ian Rush, Robbie Fowler, and [Fernando] Torres."

The narrative in 2011 was that Carroll forced his way out of Newcastle as he was determined to be the man who replaced Fernando Torres at Anfield.

The 36-year-old outlined his intentions to play into his 40s in a recent interview with Sky Sports but has left Bordeaux.

The Englishman claimed that this rhetoric was 'so far from the truth as to be almost laughable'. He also accused then Magpies boss Alan Pardew of being owner Mike Ashley's 'puppet'.

After his Liverpool disappointment, Carroll enjoyed a relatively fruitful spell at West Ham United, before later returning to his beloved Newcastle.

Now 37, he's still playing football in non-League with Dagenham & Redbridge, whom he co-owns.

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