Chris Lakey Glenn Roeder has again been linked with a move to bring striker Andy Carroll to Carrow Road in January. The Newcastle hit-man has long been the subject of speculation over a move to Norwich and this week fanned the flames when he admitted he would be more than happy to go out on a temporary deal.

Chris Lakey

Glenn Roeder has again been linked with a move to bring striker Andy Carroll to Carrow Road in January.

The Newcastle hit-man has long been the subject of speculation over a move to Norwich and this week fanned the flames when he admitted he would be more than happy to go out on a temporary deal.

The 19-year-old missed the first two months of the season because of a heel injury and faces a battle to work his way past the likes of Michael Owen, the in-form Shola Ameobi and Obafemi Martins at St James Park.

Carroll - who played 11 times for tomorrow's Carrow Road visitors Preston last season - has made just two appearances under interim manager Joe Kinnear and now looks certain to be available in the new year.

And that might just appeal to Roeder, who could soon be looking for a new strike force, with Leroy Lita here until December 7 and Antoine Sibierski due to return to Wigan after January 18.

Sibierski was brought in to complement the smaller striker, but Roeder has never really seen him as one half of a little and large pairing.

And while he has replacements for Lita, if necessary, in the shape of Arturo Lupoli and Jamie Cureton, the only player with a physical edge up front is midfielder Darel Russell.

However, Carroll stands at 6ft 3ins and is more of a target man - which could be just up Roeder's street as he searches for some consistency from his front line with a budget that doesn't allow for £1m transfers.

Carroll scored in a reserves game against Hull's second string on Tuesday night, but also missed a penalty, with Newcastle's director of football Dennis Wise - who would have to sanction any loan move - watching from the stands.

Carroll's first priority is to break into Kinnear's first team, but admitted a loan spell was a realistic alternative.

"Newcastle United come first," said Carroll, whose contract runs out in 2011. "If I am needed here as cover for injuries then so be it - but I would love to go on loan.

"We are a bit short at the moment, so we will see what happens. I will just keep going and try to get into the first team. If a loan comes along, though, it would be good for experience.

"Overall I am happy, although my fitness has not been as high as I would like. I have been doing extra work in training and that has made a difference.

"Now I am up there in terms of fitness - I have just played 90 minutes for the first time this season. I kept on running strong until the end, so hopefully the manager will see something and give me the chance."

It was Roeder who gave Carroll his Newcastle debut in 2006 and that could put the City boss high up in the pecking order if Carroll is allowed to go out on loan - a decision which may rest with a new manager at St James' Park.

Ipswich and Derby were reportedly interested in Carroll earlier this year, while Cardiff City look set to drop out after securing a deal to take Sunderland's Michael Chopra back to Ninian Park on a two-month loan deal.

Roeder was linked to Wigan defender Ryan Taylor this week but says the 24-year-old won't be coming to City on loan.

"He is a good player but that's just speculation," said Roeder. "I'm certainly aware that he's a versatile player with Premier League experience, but of course, like all Premier League players, it comes at a cost of Premier League salaries as well. Sometimes people forget that there is a chasm between Premier League salaries and Championship salaries.

"Once you're an established Premier League player, everyone knows what they earn - fortunes.

"As far as I'm concerned, he won't be turning up next week. What happens in the future, in January, who knows?"