‘No matter the division, it’s football’ – Andy Carroll on his transition from the Premier League to the French 4th division | OneFootball

In an interview with Foot Mercato, Andy Carroll (35) spoke at length about his decision to join Girondins de Bordeaux after their relegation to the 4th tier of French football and what it has been like transitioning from playing in the Premier League to a much lower level.

The former Liverpool striker shocked many when he completed his move to Les Girondins from Amiens in the summer of 2024. Bordeaux had just been demoted to the 4th tier from Ligue 2 due to financial difficulties. However, the English forward did not see this as a deterrence when deciding upon his next club. In fact, Carroll was enticed by the opportunity to play for the club, “I had the opportunity to do it.  I like the idea of ​​this project to go back to Ligue 1 and it’s something I wanted to do… Of course, it’s also a very big club with a huge fan base, and great facilities and it’s something I want to be a part of.”

The 35-year-old is no stranger to finding the back of the net. Whether it be scoring goals on the international level for England or in FA Cup semi-finals for Liverpool, the former England international has scored on the biggest stages. He has continued this theme after scoring 4 goals in his first two matches for Bordeaux albeit on a much smaller stage in the 4th tier.

Carroll spoke about the transition from playing week-in-week-out in the Premier League to playing his football in the National 2, “Not at all. It’s just football. No matter what level you play at, it’s still football. And it’s something I want to do. A few years ago, when I was out of contract and didn’t have a club, I used to play every week with my friends. We would play 11-a-side games on Thursday nights. And playing football is something I’m going to continue to do as much as I can.”

GFFN | Liam Wraith