by Liverpool boss Brendan Rogers is hoping to entice new West Ham signing Andy Carroll back to Anfield just 72 hours after the out-of-favour striker left the club.
The club, who are level on points with Aston Villa, plan to use the January transfer window to offer Carroll a lucrative deal worth £40m and as much hay as he can eat.
Rodgers let the Plan B striker leave for Upton Park as he was convinced he would bring in Fulham’s Clint Dempsey with the offer of a semi-detached house in Bootle with round-the-clock CCTV coverage.
However, the deal fell through with Liverpool’s owners understood to be reluctant to meet Dempsey’s £20k demand for a new kitchen extension and perpendicular breakfast bar.
Carroll Liverpool target
Rodgers admitted last night that Carroll’s departure and Dempsey’s failure to sign has left him with fewer striking options than a South African miner.
Liverpool FC are not alone in missing Carroll. Since his move to West Ham, bars and strip-joints in the city centre have reported their takings are down by 50%.
The under-fire LFC boss now faces the prospect of reassembling a strike force from the usable parts of Michael Owen and the remnants of Robbie Fowler’s nose.
Rodgers told us, “Andy is a proven goalscorer and has the additional advantage of knowing his way around the city’s complex one-way system.”
“Did I mention that he can have his old locker back?”
Last night Rodgers was quick to play down rumours of a rift with the club’s American owners despite finding a heavily-pierced dartboard with a picture of his face on it in an executive box.
