Half decent article on Carroll's season at QPR
I have always been a massive TC fan, But for the first time ever, I,m thinking would he improve with us back at The Lane. In terms of game time. I would not sell him just yet, but this time round I,d like to see him go to Sunderland under Poyet. I think he would be great for Carroll.
Harry Redknapp moved to reunite with Tom at the end of the Summer transfer window, a move of which excited Rangers fans following his recent performances for the England U21's. It was strange that Redknapp made the move for the youngster, with only 7 first team games for Spurs under his belt, he was often loaned out and Harry has certainly continued in that way this season, loaning out QPR's promising youngsters across the leagues and bringing in baffling loans of his own in Maiga and Keane when he had young and hungry players right under his nose..
He made a promising debut in a scrappy 1-0 victory over Birmingham in September and cemented his place in the side throughout the month, only for injury to put a stop to his run of games. He returned to the side in early December with a place on the bench away at Doncaster, but forced his way back into the first eleven for the next home game against Bournemouth and it was clear he had been missed, pulling the strings in an excellent 3-0 win. He was outstanding again in the next game against Blackburn in a man of the match performance. He was once again a regular starter, breaking only for an FA Cup tie at Everton where Spurs refused him permission to play.
With injuries to Faurlin, Phillips and Austin, the team was becoming unsettled and form was beginning to suffer. Unfortunately, Tom was becoming the target for the Rangers boo boys. Despite this, Redknapp kept the faith and he kept his place throughout the month of February, which concluded with our worst performance of the season away at Charlton.
By this time, Rangers had clinched the signing of Ravel Morrison on loan from West Ham and with Charlie Austin still out injured, it was clear that Redknapp was moulding the team around the gifted youngster. Unfortunately, it was Carroll who made way to cater for him and Tom was restricted to making appearances from the bench.
He returned to the starting eleven as Rangers got a corner turning result away at Middlesbrough. His chance was taken once more and he was outstanding in a 1-0 win over Wigan at Loftus Road in a midweek match. He was disappointing, as were the whole team in defeat away at Blackburn but the R's responded, Carroll and all, with a 5-2 win over Forest the following Saturday. As Rangers pushed for their play-off place, Carroll remained in the starting line-up against Watford and Millwall.
Tom was an unused sub in the final game against Barnsley where Redknapp played a very weakened team ahead of the Play off Semi Final against Wigan. He was again, on the bench but not required in the first leg draw at the DW and that was the final time he was selected for the R's as victory over Wigan, saw us through to Wembley to beat Derby on our way back to the Premier League. Rightly so, Tom was on the pitch with the rest of the squad during their celebrations.
Tom made 23 appearances for Rangers in their promotion winning season. As mentioned, he divided the Rangers support somewhat and just before the play off final, I conducted a poll on the popular QPR Till I Die facebook page and below are a varied range of responses;
Good: Never stops working, always available for the ball, plays first time, keeps things ticking over, wins possession a lot but without having to commit to challenges, good screening and pressing. Bad: Light weight, can be muscled off the ball, poor long passing, poor shot, instinctively conservative. Overall: Will look good in a good team, bad in a bad team.
I thought he did ok but his game needs general improvement. Playing in midfield, he is not the typical type too aggressively boss that area of the pitch, so he seems to reply on his creativity to pull the strings and try and get players fed between the lines. The slightly worrying thing is, with that part of his game he seems too often panic on the ball, with off stray passes and his final ball. I think he can become a fine player but needs to be able to read the game better, finding himself more space to be able to play forward and pick out the pass. He actually reminds me of Joe Allen a few years back with the same ability and body build. I think he needs a lot more games and I don't see him breaking into the Spurs squad next year.
He needs to work on bulking up and been able to compete more in the centre of midfield.
He's a decent player at best for us. He had moment of brilliance but would follow-up with playing like the younger inexperienced player he is. He might have caps for youth but he is far too inconsistent to see full-time minutes. He gave the ball up to cheaply and played too fast for his own good. With more time and loans he can gain the experience he needs to find himself. He tries to do too much at time but when it works, he's great. Just needs to figure out what type of player he will be. The biggest positives are his movements off the ball as he's a smart player and efficient with his work rate. Just goes too fast again for his own good. 5/10 for me all year.
Tonnes of potential, needs to beef up some
Not suited to the hustle and bustle of championship football, given time and space on the ball he can murder opponents with killer pass... Has the skill and footballing brain, needs to work on his physicality, potential still the byword!!!
Always makes himself available for the ball for the most part distributes well. His build doesn't really matter as he is a ball playing midfielder not defensive that seemed to get him a bit of stick this year even from me until I was made aware of his ability.
I would think he's gained a great deal from us this season and believe he will go on to have a good career where depends on the rest of his development.
You can see he does have a football brain & looks to make the right pass, as others have said he is too lightweight for the championship & more than often got muscled off the ball...this did lead to other teams picking on him to break down our play.
he is lightweight but does give 100% at all times and even when things are not going his way he keeps going.
Personally, I liked Tom Carroll. I do think the Championship was a bit physical for him at times but most of our better performances in the League were with Tom involved. Yes, he did have bad games as well as good, but the thing I liked the most about him, is that he DID NOT ONCE HIDE. Good game or bad game, he always showed himself and was always looking for the ball and was very positive going forward.
To continue his development, I think he does need to play on a regular basis, join a new gym and maybe visit Burger King every once in a while.
A star in the making, without a doubt...
Bobo,
Yesterday at 22:03
#1Quote & Reply
Source
http://tottenhamlive.com/threads/tom-carroll-2013-14-scout-report-by-a-qpr-fan.67/
