Jamie Carragher has insisted Andy Carroll is 'unplayable' on his day but Newcastle United's biggest challenge remains keeping the striker fit.
The former Liverpool man 19 appearances for the Magpies this season after resigning on a free transfer but only four of those were starts.
However, after a strong pre-season under his belt, Steve Bruce has stuck with Carroll for Newcastle's opening two matches of the season alongside Callum Wilson in attack.
With Joelinton still finding his feet on Tyneside after last summer's big-money move, Carroll's importance to Steve Bruce's squad is increasing.
Carragher, who played with Carroll at Anfield, is still of the belief that the big target man is simply unplayable on his day but is still striving to find consistent form after seeing his career hampered by injuries.
"Everyone knows what he brings - that aerial ability - but he was probably fortunate enough to not get a red card very early on at West Ham.
"The big thing about him is getting him fit. I don’t think all of a sudden that Andy Carroll is gonna play 40 games a season, it’s not going to happen, he’s getting towards the end of his career.
"I don’t think it’s going to change in terms of injuries. When he’s on the pitch, you’ve got to utilize him as well as you can because as we know, on his day, he’s unplayable.”
