Andy Carroll has suffered a small setback in his recovery from the ankle injury that has kept him out of action since February.

Hitman Carroll has been rapidly closing in on a return to first team action – but his recovery could have been delayed by a further week to 10 days.

It’s a blow and is more unwelcome news for boss Slaven Bilic, who is already deprived of the services of fellow strikers Enner Valencia and Mauro Zarate for tomorrow’s game against basement side, Bournemouth.

A source revealed to ClaretandHugh exclusively the bizarre events which had led to the new Carroll problem.

“It was on Sunday,” he told us. “He [Carroll] was putting on a pair of shoes and rolled his ankle. It’s put him back 7-10 days. Its been scanned and its not serious.”

Initially, the club had decided to keep Carroll on ice until October in order to ensure any new problems and ensure the healing process was 100 per cent.

Carroll however remains confident he will be back training with the first team within a fortnight.