Carroll to tweak physical game in bid to make England return
(Reuters) - West Ham United's Andy Carroll says he may have to change his physical style of play in international games as the striker makes a last-ditch attempt to win a place in the 23-man England squad travelling to France for Euro 2016.
Carroll has five weeks to catch England manager Roy Hodgson's attention and did no harm to his cause as he ran riot when he netted a hat-trick in Saturday's 3-3 Premier League draw with London rivals Arsenal.
"You have to be a bit more clever. Some of the challenges and the way I throw my body around in the Premier League wouldn't work on an international stage," Carroll told the Daily Telegraph.
"It's all about being clever. Even in the Premier League you know which refs you will get away with it and which ones you won't. So you just don't bother.
"(With some) I think, 'Ahhh, not him again, I can't do anything'. Naming no names, there's a couple. Refs are all different and you know you will get away with stuff with some that you wouldn't with others, whether it's a foul or not."
The injury-plagued 27-year-old, who is 1.88 metres tall, returned in September following a seven-month absence after knee surgery and has suffered several minor injuries since his comeback.
"A lot of people think that I actually want to be injured. The way people talk, 'Oh, he's injured again. Oh, he's doing this'. I certainly don't want to be injured," Carroll said.
"I know it's a job but it's my hobby as well. I want to be on the pitch playing football."
(Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru; editing by Clare Fallon)