Hammers man discusses Liverpool star’s arrival

Wednesday, September 12, 2012
2:09 PM

Carlton Cole has welcomed the arrival of Andy Carroll at West Ham, saying competition with the England striker could help him improve.

Cole dropped to the bench for the Hammers’ comfortable 3-0 win over Fulham following England international Carroll’s arrival on loan from Liverpool.

The £35million former Newcastle man impressed on his debut but later suffered a hamstring injury which will keep him out for six weeks, meaning Cole is likely to return to the starting line up against Norwich this weekend.

“Every year, you have to have people challenging for places because it is healthy for the club,” Cole told West Ham’s official website.

“I’m a guy who believes in that and you could get complacent if you know you are going to play week in, week out.

“It’s better to always be on your toes and I welcome a challenge like Andy Carroll because he is one of the best target men around in the Premier League and it’s just going to reinvigorate me to be a better player.”