Come home Carroll! Pardew ups ante in pursuit of Andy but Toon see loan bid rejected by Reds

Newcastle have intensified their bid to land Andy Carroll after making an official enquiry to take the Liverpool striker on a season-long loan.

Liverpool, who bought Carroll from Newcastle in a record-breaking £35million deal 18 months ago, flatly rejected the offer but it is now clear they are ready to off-load their No 9.

Newcastle boss Alan Pardew spoke of his admiration for Carroll last week and would like the Gateshead-born forward to support Demba Ba and Papiss Cisse.

Hey Andy: Newcastle have made a bid to bring Andy Carroll back to the club

Carroll, though, wants to stay at Anfield and fight for his place. He has never given any indication he wants to move and Sportsmail reported on Saturday he would turn down any suitors.

He had been hoping to persuade new manager Brendan Rodgers that he can play a part in his plans but, reluctantly, Carroll is accepting he is fighting a losing battle.

Liverpool, who signed Italy forward Fabio Borini last Friday for £8m, would be prepared to off-load Carroll if they received either a suitable bid or loan deal that has a commitment to buy at the end of 12 months.

Rodgers refused to give any assurances about the England frontman’s prospects when asked last week and many have questioned whether his physical, powerful approach would fit into the intricate passing style favoured by the new boss.

Welcome: Newcastle fans were unhappy with Carroll when he left the club in 2011

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‘He’s no different to any player we have here,’ Rodgers said. ‘They might have all the attributes but not the mentality to play.

‘It’s a bit unfair for Andy to get labelled any other way. He’s a good lad, so we will just see how the formation of the group shapes up over the next four or five weeks.’

Liverpool go to the United States for their pre-season tour but Carroll will not be in the travelling party, like other players who went to Euro 2012. He is now on holiday and is expected to link up with the squad in Boston next week.

West Ham were the first club to express an interest in Carroll and would be prepared to sign him initially on loan with a view to buying him for more than £15m should they retain their place in the Barclays Premier League.

Getting away from it: Carroll has been on holiday since England's Euro 2012 exit

Fulham are also interested and Aston Villa became the latest club to join the race when manager Paul Lambert confirmed on Saturday that the 23-year-old was one of his key summer targets.

But Newcastle would be hoping that the emotional pull of a return to his native North East would give them the trump card in this battle.

With Cisse and Ba potentially going to the Africa Cup of Nations next January and February, Pardew has been looking to bolster his attack all summer and he courted Luuk de Jong of FC Twente.



