Article body analysed
By LEWIS BROWNING, SPORTS REPORTER Published: 07: 50 AEDT, 30 March 2026 | Updated: 07: 59 AEDT, 30 March 2026 View comments Former England and Liverpool forward Andy Carroll has admitted he wasn't too keen on being a manager until he was appointed Dagenham & Redbridge boss by KSI. Carroll, 37, was made Daggers caretaker manager last Wednesday after new minority owner KSI decided to sack former boss Lee Bradbury. That decision came despite the club beating Farnborough on Tuesday night in what turned out to be Bradbury's final game to leave them in 12th place in the National League South. But Carroll's reign began in the best possible way last Saturday as his side secured a 1-0 win over play-off rivals Torquay United, with KSI watching on in glee. Then, on Saturday, the social media megastar was in attendance again as he watched his side beat Hampton & Richmond Borough 3-1 to claim victory in their third match in a row and continue their charge towards the play-offs. Carroll has now opened up on the ordeal, and revealed he only wants the job permanently if he can continue playing. Andy Carroll has admitted he did not want to be a manager until he was appointed by Dagenham & Redbridge The forward, who is currently injured, was made interim manager by new owner KSI (right) 'Management was never something I wanted to do, ' he told The Sun. 'But I always knew that if there was a chance for me to do it, I could. 'It's something that is exciting me at the minute. I'm really happy with the way it is going, but I never thought about it and it just fell on my lap. 'I want to play football. I'm still contracted here to play football and that's what I want to do every single day. If that includes having the manager's job alongside it, so be it. But being the boss permanently and not being able to play football isn't something I'd do right now. ' Former Liverpool and England man Carroll seems to be taking his new role in his stride and celebrated passionately as Stan Leech scored a first-half hat-trick for the Essex-based side on Saturday. He wore all black and carried a calm demeanor on the sidelines until his side found the back of the net. KSI, meanwhile, wore a club shirt and celebrated on the pitch at full-time. Carroll, who joined Dagenham last summer but is currently injured, also holds a minority stake in the club, and he watched the first game of KSI's tenure next to the You Tuber-turned-boxer earlier this month. He signed for Dagenham as a player after leaving Bordeaux and had netted six times in 12 games until he suffered the injury in December. Carroll has won both of his games in charge so far but only wants the job permanently if he can continue playing Carroll's appointment as caretaker boss also came despite him being due to stand trial next January after pleading not guilty to breaching a non-molestation order having been accused of repeatedly calling his ex-wife Billi Mucklow, with whom he shares three children. A non-molestation order is handed out at civil court and designed to stop someone going near another person. Breaching a non-molestation order can lead to a maximum of five years in prison.
Share what you think
No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts,
or debate this issue live on our message boards.
By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your Mail Online comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to Mail Online as usual. Do you want to automatically post your Mail Online comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to Mail Online as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on Mail Online. To do this we will link your Mail Online account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.