Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney believes that his England team mate Andy Carroll has the ability to hurt Manchester United tonight when West Ham face the league leaders at Old Trafford.
The Irons travel north hoping to bounce back from Sunday's disapponting 3-1 defeat at Tottenham - but face a tough task against the current league leaders who have won five of their six home league games so far this season (their only defeat coming, ironically, against Spurs).However Rooney - who featured alongside Carroll for England at the European Championships during the summer - believes that the 6'3" striker has the potential to cause Manchester United's defenders no end of problems tonight.
"Andy Carroll is a handful," Rooney told manutd.com. "I am sure if you ask any defender, they find it difficult to play against someone like that who is good in the air and on the floor.
"He is physical and he makes it difficult. That type of player doesn't always get all the goals but they can cause trouble up front and create problems. I am sure that is what Sam Allardyce wants him to do."
Carroll - who opened his West Ham account on Sunday at White Hart Lane with a late consolation goal for West Ham - is keen to add his sole effort but is under no illusions concerning the difficulty of the task that lies ahead both tonight and this coming weekend, when Chelsea visit the Boleyn Ground.
"We have got a tough week," he told whufc.com. "The big games are what everyone looks forward to, but we're going to have to concentrate 100 per cent on Wednesday [night]. It's going to be another tough game."
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