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By SHAUN CUSTIS

Boss Roy Hodgson is sending assistant Ray Lewington to run the rule over Carroll on Saturday when West Ham take on Newcastle.

It is expected to be a feisty encounter at Upton Park with Hammers star Carroll fired up to do well against his former Toon team-mates.

The hitman, on loan from Liverpool, has netted four goals in his last five games.

Hodgson has asked Lewington to report back and the plan is to track Carroll’s performances through to the end of the season in matches at Everton and home to Reading.

The England boss cannot watch Carroll himself because he is out of the country, apparently on FA business, though they will not say what that is.

But if Carroll does well in front of Lewington and other England scouts he can expect to be included in the party for the end-of-season friendlies at home to the Republic of Ireland and away to Brazil.

After those matches, England will have only one other friendly, against Scotland at Wembley on August 14, before their last four crucial qualifiers decide their Brazil 2014 World Cup fate.

Hodgson’s team are currently two points behind Group H leaders Montenegro having played the same number of games.

Only one team will qualify automatically for next year’s finals in Brazil.

Carroll has scored twice for England in nine appearances and was chosen in Hodgson’s Euro 2012 squad but he has never had a run in the team.

He showed what he is capable of with a stunning header in the Euro finals victory over Sweden.

But the striker was dropped to the bench when Wayne Rooney returned from a two-match ban.

 

 

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