West Ham co-owner David Sullivan admits he would not have spent a club-record £15 million on Andy Carroll had he known the striker would be sidelined for so long.
After impressing on loan at Upton Park last season, the 24-year-old completed a permanent switch from Liverpool in the summer.
The Hammers saw Carroll as a marquee signing and a significant step as they prepare to move to the 54,000-seater Olympic Stadium in 2016.
However, a heel injury has prevented the England forward from featuring since his big-money move, and in his absence West Ham have struggled for goals, having scored just 13 in 15 Premier League games this season.
Discussing Carroll's continued time on the sidelines, a frustrated Sullivan told the BBC: "Had we known he would be out for this long, we would not have signed him.
"He is a fantastic player, don't get me wrong, but I only wouldn't have signed him because I can't have that amount of wages and that amount of transfer fee (being spent) on a player who isn't going to play a minimum 20 or 30 games a season, hopefully 38 games a season.
"We are not a rich enough club to deal with that. You know any player can get injured, but we can't buy a player knowing he is going to be out for half the season.
"When we signed him we were assured by the medical staff that the very, very latest he would be back was September 1. That would have meant he would only miss two league games."
But Sullivan is still hopeful that his regrets will have disappeared by the end of the season.
He added: "If you ask me the same question at the end of the season, I hope I will be able to give you a different answer and say, 'yes, it was the right decision to sign Andy Carroll.'
"On his day he is unplayable. We love him and that is why we signed him."
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| Andy Carroll scored 7 goals in 24 league appearances while on loan at West Ham last season Photo: Getty Images |
After impressing on loan at Upton Park last season, the 24-year-old completed a permanent switch from Liverpool in the summer.
The Hammers saw Carroll as a marquee signing and a significant step as they prepare to move to the 54,000-seater Olympic Stadium in 2016.
However, a heel injury has prevented the England forward from featuring since his big-money move, and in his absence West Ham have struggled for goals, having scored just 13 in 15 Premier League games this season.
Discussing Carroll's continued time on the sidelines, a frustrated Sullivan told the BBC: "Had we known he would be out for this long, we would not have signed him.
"He is a fantastic player, don't get me wrong, but I only wouldn't have signed him because I can't have that amount of wages and that amount of transfer fee (being spent) on a player who isn't going to play a minimum 20 or 30 games a season, hopefully 38 games a season.
"We are not a rich enough club to deal with that. You know any player can get injured, but we can't buy a player knowing he is going to be out for half the season.
"When we signed him we were assured by the medical staff that the very, very latest he would be back was September 1. That would have meant he would only miss two league games."
But Sullivan is still hopeful that his regrets will have disappeared by the end of the season.
He added: "If you ask me the same question at the end of the season, I hope I will be able to give you a different answer and say, 'yes, it was the right decision to sign Andy Carroll.'
"On his day he is unplayable. We love him and that is why we signed him."
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