Andy Carroll has been described as ‘one of the best at what he does’ by teammate Aaron Cresswell, after the striker scored a superb equaliser in Monday’s 1-1 draw with Stoke City.
Carroll – making his return from injury – came off the bench to net a terrific goal in the 90th minute from the edge of the box, volleying home and earning the Hammers a share of the spoils against the Potters.
The goal was provided to Carroll by Cresswell, the fifth time the defender has given an assist for the striker during their time together at West Ham, and the 28-year-old is thrilled to see his teammate back in action.
“We’ve had a few fair injuries over the course of the season,” Cresswell said: “Andy’s come back today and showed us what he’s all about. I’m delighted for Andy. Of course, no one wants to be injured, and he had a frustrating time with injuries, but he’s come back and in five minutes he’s scored a goal.
“Everyone know what he’s about and when he’s fully fit he’s one of the best at what he does. Tonight, him and Chicharito coming on changed the game for us.”
Andy's come back and showed us what he's all about. When he's fully fit he's one of the best at what he does.
Aaron Cresswell
Stoke took the lead at London Stadium through substitute Peter Crouch, who poked home in the second period, before fellow substitute Carroll levelled the tie for the Hammers. The introduction of the striker, as well as Chicharito – who scored last week in the draw at Chelsea – and the returning Manuel Lanzini was critical in David Moyes’s side collecting a point.
Cresswell, who registered his seventh league assist of the season in the fixture, admits the Hammers had targeted a win from this fixture, with the Irons seeing three goals ruled out by the match officials for offside and handball respectively.
But, with the Irons a goal behind heading into the final ten minutes, the No3 reckons a point is a good return.
Cresswell continued: “I think, throughout the whole 90 minutes, we maybe deserved the three points. There’s two or three offside goals, on another day maybe one or two of them would have been given.
“But, it wasn’t to be, and to be fair to them, they are fighting for their lives as well as we are. They get the late goal. You look up at the clock and there’s ten minutes to go, so it’s a good point in the end.
“Before the game, three points would have been massive for us. But certainly, not losing, is a good result. I thought we showed great ability towards the end, with a disappointing goal and then, to come from behind and get a point at the end, it felt like a win for us.”
With Arsenal up next for West Ham in the Premier League, Cresswell believes one more win will be enough for the Irons to secure their top-flight status for next season, and is targeting those three points at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
“I think there’s five games to go and we’re seven points clear now, but it’s still not over until it’s over,” Cresswell continued. “One more win should see it through.
“We’ve got four or five games left, starting with Arsenal on Sunday, and it’s another tough game away. But there’s no reason why we can’t go there and get a result.”