Peter Crouch has made a habit of proving his critics wrong. Forever taunted for his beanpole frame and awkward gait, the 26 year-old is no stranger to overcoming adversity. Rejected by Tottenham as a youngster, Crouch – in his own words – “crashed and burned” during his first foray into the top flight with Aston Villa. Sixteen goals in 33 appearances in Southampton’s 2004–05 relegation season earned him a dream move to Liverpool, but even then he had to convince doubters at both club and international level. Almost inevitably, the likeable giant won over the critics by becoming Liverpool’s top goalscorer in all competitions last season, and in the process enjoyed something of cult hero status with England. Now he faces perhaps his biggest challenge of all – to earn a place in Rafa Benitez’s new and improved star-studded line-up…
Q:ARE YOU CONFIDENT YOU CAN PLAY ALONGSIDE EITHER TORRES, KUYT OR VORONIN?
A:The manager has said that I have a role to play and obviously it is up to me to do as well as I can when I get an opportunity. I am sure he will chop and change but everyone will play their fair share. People would be disappointed with me if I was not disappointed. But whenever I am called upon I will be ready – I am not the kind to go screaming and kicking down doors. I have got to prove to the manager in training that I should be in the team.
Q:SO YOU STILL ENJOY A GOOD RELATIONSHIP WITH THE BOSS?
A:He’s a fantastic manager, a top, top coach and it’s a pleasure to play under him. He gets his tactics spot on. We’ve beaten Chelsea in two big semi-finals, the FA Cup and Champions League, and both times he out-foxed Mourinho. He’s brilliant, I can’t speak highly enough of him.
Q:BUT DO YOU FEEL THIS IS THE LATEST IN A LONG LINE OF OBSTACLES YOU’VE HAD TO OVERCOME?
A:Maybe sometimes I do feel as though I need to do a little bit more than others to impress, but that's something I have to live with. But as long as I'm doing well and scoring goals I don't think people can criticise. I look at my manager at England and my manager at Liverpool and my team-mates and they all seem to be happy with how I am doing. All I can do is keep going in the same manner.
Q:IS THE PREMIER LEAGUE A CLEAR PRIORITY FOR LIVERPOOL THIS SEASON?
A:The obvious answer is to say we want to win everything! But I think the Premiership has to be the real goal. Although success in Europe is amazing, most of the fans on the street will probably tell you that they want the title. It’s been a long time since we won the title and everyone here will be doing everything they can to put that right.
Q:PRESUMAMBLY THE EARLY SEASON FORM OF STEVEN GERRARD IS A HUGE BOOST TO YOUR TITLE HOPES…
A:Absolutely. For me, he’s been the best midfield player in the world for a long time. I thought he was good when I first went to Liverpool but he’s even better when you see him training every day. He can do anything and you can play him in any position on the pitch – I don’t think there are many players who you can say that for. He can pass, tackle, and do anything you’d want from a footballer. He’ll be a big player for us this season.
Q:FINALLY, ASSESS THE CHANCES OF THIS “NEW” LIVERPOOL SIDE PIPPING MAN UNITED AND CHELSEA TO THE TITLE…
A:Rafa's definitely made some exciting signings. He's signed a lot of forward players, players that can unlock defences, like Benayoun and Torres. Voronin's come in and Babel as well, so it's exciting. Hopefully there'll be more goals and we'll be a bit more consistent away from home. In Europe we played very well but we certainly need to improve our Premier League form. Man United showed last season how important it is to make a good start and we’ve kicked off the season pretty well this time around. It’ll be very hard work but we’re hopeful we can challenge all the way.
