The striker left Newcastle in a record-breaking £35million move in January, but was only able to show flashes of his ability in the second half of last season as a result of injuries. Carroll has enjoyed a positive pre-season, scoring three goals, and ahead of the Premier League season-opener against Sunderland, Dalglish thinks the benefits are evident. The Liverpool boss said in LFC Magazine: "Andy's injury meant he was only able to train at 100 per cent on rare occasions last season. "He even played in some games when we knew he wasn't going to be at his best. "Now he is fully over that knock and has been able to do a lot more on the training field in pre-season. "That's showed in the games he has played over the last few weeks. He's fitter and scoring some goals." Liverpool will begin the season with a new-look and expensively-assembled squad following the signings of the likes of Stewart Downing, Charlie Adam and Jordan Henderson. Dalglish is not thought to be finished in the transfer window, but he is pleased with the acquisitions he has made so far. He said: "We wanted to improve the squad this summer and we think we've done that by bringing in the individuals we have. "We want to compete at the highest level possible and we feel those players can help us do that." Downing moved from Aston Villa as Dalglish sought to solve Liverpool's long-standing deficiencies in wide areas. And the England international is looking forward to playing alongside Luis Suarez, who has now returned to club training after winning the Copa America with Uruguay, in a squad he thinks has the potential to be the 'real deal'. Downing said: "I remember seeing the 3-0 win over Manchester City and thinking, 'Liverpool, they could be the real deal.' "Bringing him (Dalglish) was the right appointment at the time. With everything that had happened over the previous 18 months or so, it was the perfect opportunity for him to come in."
