Football: Carroll injured but Hammers nail Fulham

Snodgrass scores 85th-minute equaliser as Spurs held 1-1 by Norwich.

LONDON:

Andy Carroll made an immediate impact at West Ham as the Liverpool reject inspired his new club to a 3-0 win over Fulham at Upton Park but the England striker's debut was marred by a hamstring injury.

Carroll was making his first West Ham appearance after being shoved out on loan for the season by Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers, who did not believe the burly target-man was a good fit for his smooth passing style.

In other matches, Swansea and Sunderland drew 2-2 and the a similar scoreline was witnessed in the match between Wigan and Stoke. West Brom, meanwhile, registered a 2-0 win over Everton at home.

City splash the cash on deadline day

Manchester City splashed out over £35 million on five players as the Premier League champions embarked on a transfer deadline day spending spree.

City's £6 million move for Scott Sinclair was followed by the capture of Brazil right-back Maicon for £3 million. Next up was a £12 million deal for Serbia's Matija Nastasic, which saw City defender Stefan Savic join Fiorentina in part exchange for the 19-year-old, as well as the arrival of former Arsenal goal-keeper Richard Wright on a free transfer. Mancini was not finished there and he completed a £16 million move for Javi Garcia in the final minutes before the transfer window shut until January.

Tottenham were the other big movers, signing Lyon goal-keeper Hugo Lloris and swooping for Fulham forward Clint Dempsey. US international Dempsey made his surprise move after Liverpool and Aston Villa were unable to complete a deal for the £7 million-rated star.

Elsewhere, Fulham boss Martin Jol sealed a significant coup for his club as he signed Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov from Manchester United for £5 million. Chelsea allowed Ghana midfielder Michael Essien to make a season-long loan switch to Real Madrid, where he will work under his former Blues boss Jose Mourinho.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 2^nd, 2012.