Football gets in touch with roots as Carroll gives Roy head start

Just when we thought tiki-taka was taking over the world, Euro 2012 has re-introduced football to the old fashioned art of heading; and England unveiled potentially its greatest exponent as they mixed beauty and the beast to wonderful effect in a thrilling game against Sweden.

Beauty came in the shape of match-winner Danny Welbeck, whose inspired, clever and creative finish from Theo Walcott’s cross was a spectacular way to win a game; but he couldn’t have done without the beast, his strike partner Andy Carroll.

Carroll’s inclusion in Roy Hodgon’s team for last night’s match was a controversial one given the player’s chequered history both on and off the pitch; it’s a history that has included three arrests for incidents outside of nightclubs, rumours of excessive drinking and three-quarters of a season at Liverpool in which he looked a waste of money.