Hughton confident over Carroll

Newcastle boss expects striker will be fit to face Blackpool

Last updated: 7th September 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Hughton confident over Carroll

Carroll: Carrying ankle injury

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Newcastle boss Chris Hughton is confident striker Andy Carroll will be fit to face Blackpool on Saturday.

The in-form forward played through the pain barrier with an ankle injury but still managed to snatch a draw for the Magpies against Wolves in their last outing.

He was subsequently forced to withdraw from international duty with England Under-21s but Hughton believes his promising striker, who has already notched four top-flight goals this season, will be able to play against the Seasiders at St James' Park.

Hughton told the Newcastle Chronicle: "He's doing OK, but he still hasn't trained. We have to make sure he is rid of the problem.

"When it happened before the Wolves game he didn't train for five days. And there was still a lot of swelling afterwards.

"We're confident he'll be OK for Blackpool, but as always we'll continue to assess his fitness throughout the week."

Despite his confidence, the Newcastle boss has still withdrawn Nile Ranger from the reserve team squad to face Liverpool on Tuesday as a precaution in case Carroll does not make it for Saturday.