Liverpool FC Forum

[Anon_Villan]

Massive aerial threat? I'm not so sure. He has improved his heading a lot but still doesn't lead the line well or get up for headers well. If its into his chest he has a great touch mind.

Another problem for Rodney is that it is so easy to make it look like he's committing a foul. Don't jump, lean in and he'll be bending all over the defender - remember the England-Spain game? This exact thing must have happened 10 times at least.

I do like him though and reckon he'd be a better partner to Torres than Kuyt.

[ivor_the_injun]

Spot on Leon.

I'd be surprised if Crouch was as underused as Robbie was last season, and to be honest I see Torres, Kuyt and Crouch making as many appearances as one another throughout the season, with Voronin maybe figuring in almost as many, but mainly from the subs bench.

Anyone that thinks Crouch is leaving as a result of not figuring on Saturday needs to look at our squad list and smack themselves around a bit. 35 players in the squad, 4 first team strikers, 11 places on the pitch, 4 outfield spots on the bench.

Do the f*cking maths. 20 players will miss out every single week, and such is the depth in our squad right now, big names will be among them. Kewell and Benayoun weren't on the bench either last weekend - does that mean they're on the way out too?

[RedBlood]

Massive aerial threat? I'm not so sure. He has improved his heading a lot but still doesn't lead the line well or get up for headers well. If its into his chest he has a great touch mind.

Another problem for Rodney is that it is so easy to make it look like he's committing a foul. Don't jump, lean in and he'll be bending all over the defender - remember the England-Spain game? This exact thing must have happened 10 times at least.

I do like him though and reckon he'd be a better partner to Torres than Kuyt.

he isnt as good as he should be for his height, i agree with you there
but he still causes defenders alot of problems in the air

[heimdall]

Massive aerial threat? I'm not so sure. He has improved his heading a lot but still doesn't lead the line well or get up for headers well. If its into his chest he has a great touch mind.

Another problem for Rodney is that it is so easy to make it look like he's committing a foul. Don't jump, lean in and he'll be bending all over the defender - remember the England-Spain game? This exact thing must have happened 10 times at least.

I do like him though and reckon he'd be a better partner to Torres than Kuyt.

he isnt as good as he should be for his height, i agree with you there
but he still causes defenders alot of problems in the air

he should be a lethal aerial threat with his massive height advantage, he really needs to work on that aspect of his game, if he did and improved maybe he would get more games.
Overall I'm happy enough for him to be in the team all I'm saying is that if we got a silly money offer we should sell him and get some decent wingers, that is what we are still lacking.

[Owzat]

Massive aerial threat? I'm not so sure. He has improved his heading a lot but still doesn't lead the line well or get up for headers well. If its into his chest he has a great touch mind.

Another problem for Rodney is that it is so easy to make it look like he's committing a foul. Don't jump, lean in and he'll be bending all over the defender - remember the England-Spain game? This exact thing must have happened 10 times at least.

I do like him though and reckon he'd be a better partner to Torres than Kuyt.

he isnt as good as he should be for his height, i agree with you there
but he still causes defenders alot of problems in the air

I think with regards his heading he simply struggles to give it power and direction, when he does score I reckon it is because the cross does the hard work as it were and he supplies the direction. I'd be interested to know how many he has scored with head compared to with foot (deflections excluded)

He gives away too many fouls, Anon_Villan is right that he makes it too easy to penalise him. I find his touch is great if he is given enough space to control the ball, if you stand just off him and wait you can take the ball off him when he turns or tries to play the ball. He also tends to be one of those strikers like Heskey who needs to hit the ball right and doesn't often enough which is why he often scores some sweet goals. The rest of the time he couldn't hit a cows ar se with a banjo.

Overall he'd need to be more consistent against the better sides and find the net more often. He's only ever been consistent on the south coast ie for pompey and soton.

[Anon_Villan]

If Crouch had any upper body strength he would be a much improved player, get him down the gym.

[Owzat]

No matter how many times people are told they just DO NOT listen.

Rafa wants four (or five) strikers each scoring 10-15 goals and NOT two stikers each scoring 20 - FACT

Crouch has proven his ability, both in the Premiership and europe - FACT

Crouch could have been sold for good money in the summer but Rafa sat him down and told him he was in his plans - FACT

Yet on the very first occasion that one of the strikers is left out they start writing stories of links to moves and unrest. You would expect it from the lazy bas.tard journalists but not from members of Liverpool Forums.

       

You are a little excessive with your use of the word "FACT", Crouch has proven his ability in terms of that he CAN do things not proven he is a good striker. His record for Liverpool is around one every three games, a good striker scores pretty much every other game - now that is a FACT

I didn't realise Rafa called you in on his chats with players, I must make a note of that

And people are basing their discussions on his future because he isn't good enough for Liverpool. I could put "FACT" in but it is my opinion and those that overuse the word "FACT" simply cannot put together a strong enough case and think feeble minds will believe their opinion is fact. You need to be careful, it's traditionally mancs that don't know the difference between facts and opinions.

And maybe people "DO NOT listen" because they don't love the sound of your voice as much as you do, or maybe they see through your misappropriate use of the word fact and everyone's entitled to their opinion and to disagree with your's.

[Rafa D]

He too busy blasting this bird everywhere to get his arse in the gym.



but so would i.

[Owzat]

Can someone please put a spade in that picture, she is way too hot for someone as ugly and goofy as Crouch. Must be the money or he's got a proportionately long ****

[66-1112520797]

No matter how many times people are told they just DO NOT listen.

Rafa wants four (or five) strikers each scoring 10-15 goals and NOT two stikers each scoring 20 - FACT

Crouch has proven his ability, both in the Premiership and europe - FACT

Crouch could have been sold for good money in the summer but Rafa sat him down and told him he was in his plans - FACT

Yet on the very first occasion that one of the strikers is left out they start writing stories of links to moves and unrest. You would expect it from the lazy bas.tard journalists but not from members of Liverpool Forums.

       

You are a little excessive with your use of the word "FACT", Crouch has proven his ability in terms of that he CAN do things not proven he is a good striker. His record for Liverpool is around one every three games, a good striker scores pretty much every other game - now that is a FACT

I didn't realise Rafa called you in on his chats with players, I must make a note of that

And people are basing their discussions on his future because he isn't good enough for Liverpool. I could put "FACT" in but it is my opinion and those that overuse the word "FACT" simply cannot put together a strong enough case and think feeble minds will believe their opinion is fact. You need to be careful, it's traditionally mancs that don't know the difference between facts and opinions.

And maybe people "DO NOT listen" because they don't love the sound of your voice as much as you do, or maybe they see through your misappropriate use of the word fact and everyone's entitled to their opinion and to disagree with your's.

Good counter argument Owzat.

But I tend to agree with the Leon on this one. He's right in saying that just because Crouch didnt make the squad on Saturday journo's and fans alike have come up with a "fishy" conclusion. A conclusion in that the lanky fella is on his way out.

I do recall Rafa saying in a sky interview he'd prefer 4 or five of his strikers to score 10-15 goals than one or two scoring 20. So yes I think you'll find that that is a fact mate.

"Crouch has proven his ability, both in the Premiership and europe - FACT"

IMHO Crouch has proven his ability especially in the Prem, I wouldnt say its fact as we're all going to have our own opinions. But think back to last season when Crouch early on was in fine form for Rafa to go and rotate him out of form. The bloke again IMO has proven to me that he is able to do a job for us. He is a useful squad player and one which offers something different to the table.

"Crouch could have been sold for good money in the summer but Rafa sat him down and told him he was in his plans - FACT"

I too think this is a fact, I remember Crouch going to the manager at the end of last season to see if he featured in his plans this season. That was also released on sky sports, to which Crouch appeared to be happy in the knowledge he featured in Rafa's plans.

All in all I think he's a good enough player to warrant a contract within the squad. A forward who is totally different to anything else we have, I wouldnt look to offload him.

[Sabre]

Opinion: No one has given anything for free to Crouch.

Fact: He didn't cost a fortune.

Fact: He wasn't a super star coming from a big club.

Fact: He had many doubters in the islands, he was insulted in other stadiums, he wasn't helped by the press when they talked about his football.

Opinion: He went through all this and proved to be more than useful for his club. No one can ask him for a lot of goals when other more expensive players (Morientes) didn't achieve that neither.

Fact: He's respected by his team mates. WHen Spanish reds come to Spain, far from english microphones, both Morientes after being here, Alonso while in holidays, praised Crouch's game and always highlight Crouch as one of the players to take care about in a game.

Opinion: He'll be missed if he leaves.

[Rafa D]

He aint going anywhere Sabre.

I think he's ace and he is very much part of Rafa's plans.

The crowd at Anfield love him as well.

[account deleted by request]

Crouch at the crossroads
Has playing the celebrity game backfired on the England star with the glamour model girlfriend?
Last updated at 21:43pm on 29th September 2007

It was the moment Peter Crouch felt he had really made it. Ambling across the foyer in his New York hotel, gland's nervous new recruit was stopped in his tracks by none other than David Beckham.

Intimidated by his captain's superstar status, Crouch did not quite know what to say until Beckham broke the ice with a surprise invitation. 'I'm going out in Manhattan tonight. Why don't you come and join me. I've arranged a venue,' said the England captain to his awestruck younger colleague.

That night in 2005, Peter Crouch — formerly of the Tottenham youth team, Dulwich Hamlet, Swedish part-timers FC Hassleholm, QPR, Norwich, Aston Villa,Portsmouth and Southampton — got his first taste of what it would be like to be a proper football celebrity.

Back then, in the trendy Bungalow 8 bar on West 27th Street, it was Beckham who was the centre of attention, and few people outside Southampton knew who Crouch was. 'When I first met him, I was like: “Oh my God, it's David Beckham”,' said Crouch. 'We went out and even in New York, everyone seemed to know who Becks was — he was that big a star.

'I was on the dance floor throwing some shapes. He sat in the corner, chilling out and looking extremely cool.

Eight months earlier, I had been in the Southampton reserves. Now I was rolling into a flashy New York bar with the England captain. I couldn't have imagined it.'

That was the start of an incredible twoyear roller-coaster ride for Crouch, who went from journeyman forward to national icon, partly through his determination to prove 6ft 7in beanpoles can make excellent footballers and partly due to his likeable personality and into a national craze before last year's World Cup. But that celebrity — so welcome at the beginning — is now threatening to thwart his ambitions.

From Liverpool's top scorer to fourthchoice striker, from World Cup star to behind Emile Heskey in the queue, Crouch is at another crossroads after two years of non-stop success.Yesterday, he was not even in Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez's 16 who played at Wigan.

Publicly Crouch will not accept that all the attention he has received — with glamour model girlfriend Abbey Clancy ensuring he appears in the gossip columns as much as the sports pages — has helped derail his career. But the truth is in what is not included in the autobiography he released last week.

Walking Tall is a tale of what can be achieved, from living in a YMCA as a kid because his parents could not afford a house to the day he signed for Liverpool.

But nowhere in the 322 pages is there a single mention of his relationship with Clancy, despite the pair appearing regularly in tabloid gossip columns and Crouch recently appearing to cheer her on in the TV reality show Hell's Kitchen.

Benitez has long been suspicious of Crouch's public image. He has regularly peppered the word 'focus' when talking about Crouch to the media and, on one occasion, his advisers had to have a serious heart-to-heart with the striker.

Perhaps wary of the way Sir Alex Ferguson ditched Beckham because he felt his wife, Victoria, was making him too showbiz, Crouch has now bizarrely tried to airbrush Clancy out of his life story, even though they are still an item.

While those close to Crouch insist he does not do any more socialising than the average Premiership footballer, the perception is that his eye has been taken off the ball. His recent cameo on Hell's Kitchen brought a flurry of angry responses from Liverpool fans.

A comment posted on a popular website forum said:'What the hell is he doing on that show in London? He should be in the gym working hard to get back in the Liverpool team.' It was fairly typical of the reaction and you can only imagine what Benitez was thinking.

Some may think it a bit unchivalrous to ignore Clancy in what purports to be a true insight into his life but there will be plenty of others glad that an engaging rags-to-riches story is a WAG-free zone.

Understandably, Crouch himself wants to have his cake and eat it. That means dating a gorgeous blonde most Liverpool fans would love to have on their arm, but without publicising it to antagonise his manager or supporters.

'I set out to be a footballer but the Robot Dance elevated me to something bigger,' he said in an extensive Mail on Sunday interview where he discussed the celebrity issue while skilfully avoiding all mention of Abbey.

'I found the attention hilarious to begin with. I did an off-the-cuff dance and suddenly it was being analysed on CNN.

'People wanted to find out about me and see the real me. But I never sought celebrity and, to be honest, it makes my life a bit harder now. In the old days players could go home after football and do what they liked. Now you have to be careful with everything.

'It's something I have to be conscious of, like a lot of England players. You are probably doing the same as another player but because you are high profile, it is reported on. It is something you have to respect and take into account.'

But what does Benitez think of it all? 'I think he knows how big football has gone,' responds Crouch. 'Our private lives and lives outside football is reported on and it's something we can't help.

'I am happy in my personal life at the moment and want to continue being happy.A family and kids one day? Yeah, but not yet. Personally, I try to keep my private life like that, but these days your other half seems to be reported as well.'

The irony is that when Crouch joined Liverpool, he played every week despite failing to score in his first three months.

Now, having won the FA Cup and bagged 23 goals for club and country last season, he has not been picked for the big games and sometimes is left out of the 16 altogether, with £25m Fernando Torres the new Kop idol.

'I'm a better player now than I ever have been,' he said. 'As I get older, I think I will improve even more. Physically, I've become stronger. I've learned how to play against defenders and use my size. 'I've become more thick-skinned and have more to offer. I felt I did well and hoped to kick on this season. I'm still hoping I do get a big enough involvement this season.'

England may offer an escape next month. With Michael Owen and Heskey likely to miss important Euro 2008 qualifiers against Estonia and Russia, Crouch is desperate to see off the challenge of Dean Ashton to link up with Wayne Rooney.

'I've played with Wayne before and we've done well,' he said. 'I feel I'm best playing right up against the defenders, holding things up and getting in the box, where I score the majority of my goals. Wayne allows me to do that.'

Crouch has had to overcome hurdles at every step and Walking Tall details them all except, inevitably, the departure of Clancy from the World Cup WAGS following talk of drug-taking. After rejection at Spurs,he joined QPR.

From then onwards, the beanpole striker seemed to be moved on every season.

A £5m move to Aston Villa proved disastrous when Graham Taylor was sacked, as did the next one to Southampton, where a similar thing happened to Paul Sturrock, until Harry Redknapp arrived at St Mary's and rejuvenated his career.

Part of Crouch's charm is his ability to bounce back and his loyalty. He missed Steven Gerrard's wedding last summer to attend that of his ex-Villa team-mate Gareth Barry. 'I went to Gareth's because I had known him the longest, I consider him a real good mate and I owed it to him to be there,' he said. 'There weren't any famous people there but it was the right one for me to go to. I explained it to Stevie and I think he understood.'

Crouch has had to overcome more than most to become a success. How ironic it would be if becoming a celebrity put the mockers on his football career . . .with or without the 'invisible' Abbey Clancy.
                                  -----------------------------------------
                                   
I'm not sure what the problem is with Crouch (if there is one) but he hasn't seemed the same player this season so far. Whether his head is in the clouds, or he's suffering from a hangover from not being picked for the CL final, or problems with the manager over selection I don't know, but he needs to shake himself up if he wants to make a significant contribution to our season.

He has a real chance to establish himself as Torres partner if he shapes himself. Kuyt is proving less than the perfect strike partner at the moment and no real goal threat, and Veronin after a great start may now be finding the goals a little more hard to find. Step up and grab the chance Peter or face being shunted out to some lesser club sooner than you think.

[Ciggy]

Abby Clancy will drop him like a ton of bricks if he leaves Liverpool maybe he knows this maybe its playing on his mind.
An in that article Saint it says that Liverpool fans where moaning about him being at Hell's Kitchen in London but he was away with England that week so thats rubbish.

He is totally smitten with her I know she is a stunner but she is only with him for the money even though he is a nice genuine fella.

I think this will be his last season at Liverpool if I am honest.

[woof woof !]

If ever there was a "confidence" player, it's Peter Crouch. As mentioned in that article the manager initially stuck by Crouch and consequently his game got better , so much so that many (myself included) who had raged against his signing slowly began to revise their opinion of Crouch and what he could bring to the team. His elevation from a virtual also ran to international status was an indication of the lads latent abilities. Sadly since apparently losing his club managers confidence Crouchs own confidence has seemingly taken a knock and his football has become increasingly ragged. A classic case of a player steadily improving his game only to be rotated out of form.

Agree with Ciggy that this could be his last season with us.