Former England, Liverpool and Newcastle striker Andy Carroll has revealed he was sexually assaulted by a man who was jailed for three years. Carroll opened up on the 'traumatic' and 'scary' experience, which took place in 2021, in a chapter of his new book, Owning It, released on Thursday.
Decision to speak publicly
Carroll confessed that he 'can't forget' the incident and gave serious thought to omitting it from his book completely. But after a conversation with his girlfriend, Lou Teasdale, he decided to speak publicly in the hope that sharing his story will help others who have gone through similar ordeals.
"Other things I'd quite like to forget but can't," Carroll wrote. "Something happened to me a few years ago that was so traumatic I only decided to include it in this book at the very last minute."
"I was sexually assaulted, there I said it. Scary to even think about and only a few people knew about it before now. Me and Lou spent a lot of time discussing whether to mention it in this book or not. I avoided my publisher for so long that they probably suspected I got cold feet."
Details of the assault
Carroll explained that the assault took place after a match for Newcastle 'down south'. He had been convinced to let a 'celebrity mate' stay at his house overnight to watch a boxing match and stay in the spare room. Carroll was aware of the man, who 'bombarded' him with text messages and gave the striker 'the creeps'.
Carroll went to bed and then described being awoken by the man trying to attack him. He threw the perpetrator out of the house and hit him 'as hard as he could' when the man tried to re-enter the home. Carroll then called the police and sobbed in his children's nanny's arms.
Attacker sentenced
The attacker denied the allegations but was charged with sexual offences and sentenced to three years in prison. He was also placed on the National Sex Offender Register and prohibited from entering the village where Carroll lived.
"The trauma of what happened to me hasn't gone away; I'm still coping with it every day," Carroll explained. "If you keep something hidden for years, you obviously don't want people to know about it; but then I started thinking about the incident in relation to the title of this book."
"By owning what happened to me rather than trying to bury it, perhaps I can have some control over it, rather than it controlling me."
If you've been a victim of sexual assault, the Rape Crisis' 24/7 Rape & Sexual Abuse Support Line is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year. You can call 0808 500 2222 or visit their website to start a free online chat.
