It's been a year since Carroll's big-money, high-profile switch from the north-east to the north-west. Big things were expected of the youngster after his flying start to life in the Premier League with Newcastle United, but Carroll has so far failed to deliver and he's set to line-up against his old team-mates again on Friday night.

'The Torres of the north' has scored just two Premier League goals for the Reds in nine starts and seven substitute appearances this season. Although the fact that his tally is only bettered by the five league goals of Suarez this campaign says just as much about Liverpool's lack of fire-power as Carroll's contribution. And given Newcastle's flying start to this campaign, maybe questions have to be asked as to whether Carroll made the right decision in departing St James' Park last January.

But with Suarez potentially serving a lengthy ban, Carroll has the chance to remind the Liverpool faithful why the club spent such a large sum on acquiring his signature and reawaken Fabio Capello to his potential, challenging for the 'fifth striker spot' in the Euro 2012 squad. The 22-year-old is currently 18.5 (Betfair) to be the top English goalscorer, but if he fails to provide, Kenny Dalglish's side could miss out on European football for a second consecutive season and another forward could get the nod to board the flight to Krakow in the summer.

The 'fifth striker spot' has been a source of contention in recent tournaments and we assume the front-runners for the first four spots in Fabio Capello's squad are Wayne Rooney, Daniel Sturridge, Darren Bent and Jermain Defoe. If Fabio Capello is on the hunt for an extra centre-forward to bulk out his front-line, there are a couple of options available to him. Danny Welbeck, Gabriel Agbonlahor and even out-of-favour Peter Crouch could stake a late claim for a place and Arsenal's Theo Walcott is a centre-forward option too. The England boss could also do worse than looking at the slightly left-field option of Norwich City's Grant Holt - 40.0 for top English goalscorer.

Holt, while being an unlikely name for many, wouldn't necessarily be such an unexpected choice. He currently occupies a high position in the Premier League top scorers list at the season's halfway stage. Alongside the likes of Frank Lampard and Gareth Bale, Holt sits joint tenth with seven goals in just nine league starts and he's certainly not one to shirk a physical encounter, with many of the league's top defenders having already marked his card as a force to be reckoned with.

But for Andy Carroll, there's still all to play for heading into Euro 2012 - but first thing's first, he needs to justify that £35m price tag and establish himself as top-dog for Liverpool and in the Premier League. His first opportunity could come when the Reds meet his old club on Friday.