Transfer Rumor Bombshell: Andy Carroll could be headed to China

Various media outlets are quoting a story in The Sun saying that West Ham United striker Andy Carroll may be headed to the Chinese Super League. With the transfer window still open for Chinese clubs until next Tuesday, clubs might be looking to cash in on big money moves that wouldn’t have had a chance to go through during the January transfer window.

While the potential of a Wayne Rooney move to China has grabbed the headlines recently, the clubs in the Chinese Super League have been throwing huge sums of money around grabbing star players such as ex-Hammer Carlos Tevez, former Chelsea player Oscar, ex-Zenit player Axel Witsel, and former Sunderland player Asamoah Gyan. The big money being splashed around is attractive to players and clubs alike, with Carlos Tevez earning a reported 615,000 pounds a week in China and Chelsea cashing in on a 60 million pound transfer fee for Oscar. With that in mind, it was only a matter of time until a West Ham player not named Dimitri Payet would be linked to a big money move.

The Sun reports that the West Ham board is frustrated with the Andy Carroll injury situation and would like to off load him to a big money move abroad, in part because of the 130,000 pounds a week they are paying him to sit around injured. The timing seems curious, however, since West Ham have looked like a different team when Carroll has been in the side and his run of six goals in nine games has put him back on the England team radar. And he did score that goal at Crystal Palace.

Additionally, it’s not as if Carroll’s injury prone nature is news to anyone. Carroll has been injured for long stretches of time since his move to East London from Liverpool in 2012. Carroll has only been fit for more than 20 appearances twice since his move, in 2012-13 and 2015-16. Last year he played for West Ham 32 times, which was as much as he played the previous two years combined. So while the board could be looking to move on from Carroll, doing so now seems odd, especially since the transfer window is closed for English clubs and the club has been forced to play multiple players out of position in the absence of Carroll. So while a big-money move away from the London Stadium might be in the cards for Andy, it will likely not happen until the summer and even then it might not happen at all.