Carroll:
“Nobody at the club is number one. You have to keep working hard in matches and in training and hope that gaffer picks you each week. The competition between Tim and me is not a worry. It’s good to have that competition behind you. Tim and Ricardo are both there pushing me on.
“You know that you have to be on your toes and ready for the game. You know your concentration has to be right for every game. You do sometimes expect to be on the teamsheet when you are playing well. If you make mistakes then you have doubts.
“We have been working hard on the defence in training, sorting the back four out. We’re doing well at the moment. I try talk a lot to the defence. That helps them, but it also helps me keep my concentration. That is important because, like against Manchester City, I had nothing to do in the game. But you may have to do something, to produce a save, in the last minute. That is why your concentration has to be right for the full 90 minutes.”