Newcastle United legend Malcolm MacDonald has warned Andy Carroll not to believe his own hype.

Carroll is a leading contender for the No 9 shirt next term and, while 19 goals was a respectable tally in his first season as a first-team regular, MacDonald would like to see even more.

He told the Evening Chronicle: "He took a lot of plaudits last season but he can't rest on that.

"The first half of the season saw him score just a couple of goals, but he had a great run in the second.

"He's got to look at how good he can be and how bad he can be, assess the strengths and weaknesses and make sure he's the main man at his club, in the same way as Rooney at Man U and Drogba at Chelsea.

"You've got to aim high.

"Look at Darren Bent - he scored 25 goals for Sunderland in a poor team, kept them up and he still didn't make it.

"That's the benchmark for Carroll if he wants to be in the international reckoning at senior level in the next couple of years."