Grouchy.

[crouchea.livejournal.com]

Perusing Crouchie-related articles online, and I found this interesting one from The Express which pretty much sums up my feelings/frustrations about him not playing enough for the joke that is our  national team.

PETER CROUCH IS HEAD AND SHOULDERS ABOVE THE REST


Peter Crouch is inexorably becoming England's top striker
By Colin Marfham 
Call it a tall story if you like, but it’s the god’s honest truth ... Peter Crouch is England’s most successful striker. Even if the national manager doesn’t think so.

Defenders all over the world admit the 6ft 7in frontman is probably one of the players they least like coming up against.

He has scored more goals in a shorter time than anyone else in an England shirt in the past five years.

But don’t take my word for it, it’s all there in black and white.

Since 2005, the giant striker Fabio Capello clearly doesn’t rate highly, has towered over most of the rivals who so often get the nod in front of him. And that includes Wayne Rooney.

Yet still the Spurs striker, who is already forging a formidable Premier League partnership with Dutch master Rafael van der Vaart, is seemingly always destined to be an England bridesmaid, never the bride.

Despite his record, Crouch hardly got a look-in at the World Cup.

But he can reasonably expect to lead the line against Montenegro on Tuesday – probably because Capello has no other credible candidate.

The manager would almost certainly have gone with Emile Heskey instead of him if he could have tempted the enigmatic Villa man out of international retirement.

And even 33-year-old Kevin Davies, who hasn’t been anywhere near an England camp for more than 10 years, is suddenly considered a credible alternative.

In the immortal words of Lewis Carroll, it is curiouser and curiouser.Since Crouch won his first cap he has scored 21 goals in 40 games. Heskey would have been given a chance on the back of a record of just seven goals in 62 appearances.

Even compared to Rooney’s record, it makes you wonder what poor old Crouchy has to do to impress his England boss.

True, the clearly out of sorts Rooney has bagged five more England goals than his Spurs rival. But it’s taken him 27 more games and two more years to get them.

Sunderland’s Darren Bent will be in the mix again on Tuesday, but he’s another Capello doesn’t really fancy in the long term. You can understand that, with a record of just one goal in seven games over four years.

And the so-called Beast of Bolton Davies? No goals in three England Under-21 outings 10 years ago.

There is also Crouch’s Spurs team-mate Jermain Defoe, out injured at the moment. The diminutive striker has made five more appearances than his White Hart Lane sidekick and has netted six fewer England goals.

Hardly any wonder then that Spurs boss, Harry Redknapp, struggles to work it all out as well.

Redknapp knows more than most about Crouch’s qualities. He has signed him three times and paid more than £20million for his services.
 


In fact, he rates him so highly now that he went on record recently as saying that he wouldn’t sell him “at any price”.

And without wishing to tell the England manager how to suck eggs, he added: “England need Peter Crouch.” He may well be right.

sauce

I AGREE WITH THIS SO MUCH. It made me sosososososo mad the way he was overlooked in the World Cup, I still ain't over it!!!!! I hear that yawn-bringing argument "he only scores against crap teams" all the fricking time, but, going with that, even if he does only score against "lower" teams, none of England did even that against Algeria, just saying. Give the man a chance, and he bloody scores!!!  OK that's not really been exhibited in the premier league this season so far, but.  Gar, the way Capello would rather play Heskey over Crouchie really really really gets my goat. I'm telling you, it's inexplicable why Crouchie plays so little for England when his international record is so good.

/ rant over.

And now just watch Kevin "ankle breaker" Davies or Capello's plumber start ahead of Peterpoo on Tuesday night.

On a marginally less whiny note, bung yourself for this if you ain't done so already and want to participate =))))

Comments

[genbu-no-miko24.livejournal.com]

I don't too much about Crouch, but I'll never forget the goal against trinadad I think.

[ultraelectric.livejournal.com]

Capello has something against freakishly tall people.

No, but on a serious note, it is amazing Crouch doesn't get the playing time he deserves for the England NT.

[onsides.livejournal.com]

lmao I love the cut text

I definitely think he deserves so more attention with the skill he has.

[crouchea.livejournal.com]

ty bb <3

I have been ALL OVER Girls Aloud songs in September/October, and Untouchable is like, one of my favourites!! In fact, if it weren't for Sexy! No No No..., it would be my favourite. I am in love with the "beautiful robots" line in it, and Nadine sings it so well!

ok, didn't mean to go off on one about GA there, but yeah. I rate 'em. ;)

[onsides.livejournal.com]

Oh yes! Out of control is pretty amazing. Untouchable is a definite stand out track.

I hope they come back soon.

[crouchea.livejournal.com]

Right??!? I mean, I can take Cheryl as a single artist (Happy Hour and Boys are awesome), and Nadine's Insatiable is loadsa fun... but they were definitely fiercest as a fivesome; they were all perfect foils for each other and gelled perfectly. There just isn't a girlband like them (The Saturdays are shit). I MISS GIRLS ALOUD.

[onsides.livejournal.com]

:D :D

I love Cheryl's solo work soo much. Maybe after she drops this new album they'll get back to being awesome (I'll ignore that lmao ;)

[casi-casi.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, Cheryl is stunning in your icon. But what's new.

[scarlet-ox.livejournal.com]

He should have played more in the WC but he was probably lucky to avoid being involved in the mess that was the England NT.

(Losing 4-1 to Germany, Crouch the obvious choice to come off the bench, but Defoe is replaced by Heskey. Whut?)

I'd play Crouch over Rooney. I'm probably in the minority but I would.

[crouchea.livejournal.com]

I'd play Crouch over Rooney.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

[youth-depraved.livejournal.com]

i kept yelling at my tv for capello to put crouch in the entire world cup. rooney was so shitty that whole time, he should have sat his ass on the bench. but noooooooooooooo. :/

[scarlet-ox.livejournal.com]

This, so much. Rooney hasn't even had to fight to keep his place in the starting eleven for England. I'd much rather see Defoe and Crouch (obviously this can't happen on Tuesday) starting for England, and for Rooney to begin returning to his previous form for United before returning to the starting line-up. At the moment he shouldn't get any further than the bench.

[whatwouldwasdo.livejournal.com]

yeah but... capello's a prick.

/lolnothingmoretoadd

[neecule.livejournal.com]

Agree with the article.

..seemingly always destined to be an England bridesmaid, never the bride.
Capello, you twat. smh.

[tanuhmah.livejournal.com]

I hope you aren't calling Algeria a crap team.

But yeah, I was WTF at Crouch lack of minutes when Rooney was playing and shit and should have been on the bench.

[crouchea.livejournal.com]

No. The only team I'd dub "crap" is my own, the wonderful ingerland. har.

Capello fucking BUMS Shrek, it irks me SO much. Especially as that hypocrite told the English media that he'd pick players "on form, not reputation." Mmmmhmm. That's why he kept Shrek on the pitch when he was playing like some kind of blind ogre then, ok.

[tanuhmah.livejournal.com]

Okay sorry I misread the statement because you were talking about scoring against crap teams.

England nt needs a revamp, new blood basically. It's missing out a whole generation of players who are top form and playing better than Fabios chosen ones. It pisses me that they get pissed at the press for calling them out on reputation over skills. How do you expect to win if you have an aging team? Look at Ghana and Germany, the had youthful players and both made top five. Sometimes I want to kill England Nt management and I'm far from an england nt supporter.

[lilsuperstar19.livejournal.com]

Not a huge Crouchy fan, but its ridiculous how little playing time he gets. With Rooney (who I do like) playing like shit right now, I think its time to put Crouch in.

[secretivexhero.livejournal.com]

I prefer Rooney and Defoe, but Crouch should get more time.

[lady-lunacy.livejournal.com]

I just want Capello to stop playing Rooney

I'd prefer Bent (only 7 caps wtf) tbh but at this point anybody is better than Rooney even Davies

[casi-casi.livejournal.com]

I love Peter Crouch. And I love your cut text.

[scarlet-ox.livejournal.com]

"Darren Bent will miss Tuesday night's game through injury and the England Manager says Peter Crouch will partner Wayne Rooney up front." - FA Twitter.

[crouchea.livejournal.com]

Feel bad for Bent's injury (and frankly, the starting two shoulda been Pete and him), but I can't help but feel happy for my big robot!! :)))))))

[missgoldietrue.livejournal.com]

I vaguely remember something about Capello having a hate-on for 'older' players, because he had some fantasy of creating a 'better' vibe and shaping a 'new' England team with an eye to the long term with as many younger players as possible...was this a carryover of that? This might just have been something crazy that came out around World Cup time, though, and I may be misremembering.

[youth-depraved.livejournal.com]

i want him to do the damn robot again, so capello needs to play him so it can happen :/

[epouvante.livejournal.com]

Heh I'm sure your post had something to do with his start against Montenegro ;-) seriously though, the argument that he only scores against "crap" teams is absurd to me, because he has a good CL record too. To me I think that says he knows how to show up for bigger games, which I definitely appreciate as a spurs fan, lol.