Peter Crouch

[silverlining]

I still maintain Crouch leaving was the beginning of the end of the Rafalution. We should have worked far, far harder to keep him (assuming we worked to keep him at all).

 

Why? You can't keep a player who wants games with a promise of "well, we do only play with one striker, who's a million times better than you, but he gets injured a lot you know?"

 

He didn't score many goals for us, and is hopeless as the lone striker option because he can't run.

[Chinandeler Bong]

Not going to happen anyway.

[JohnnyH]

By the way, well done to Hammy for creating this new life to an old thread.

[aws]

Just spoken to Andy. He edited his post because he's now only 99% sure.

[mgw100]

Why? You can't keep a player who wants games with a promise of "well, we do only play with one striker, who's a million times better than you, but he gets injured a lot you know?"

 

He didn't score many goals for us, and is hopeless as the lone striker option because he can't run.

 

Understand your point but I think Crouch would have stayed if he had been Torres' understudy rather than being behindVoronin and Kuyt in the CF pecking order. He would have played a decent amount of games aside from injury cover if you include when we played 442 and when we rested Torres and I think that would have been enough for him to stay.

 

I think he is ok as a lone striker because he can hold the ball up. He needs lots of support from attacking midfielders obviously, including them getting beyond him to pick up on flick ons. Gerrard is great at that if he is still here.

 

I would definitely have him back if the price was right...i.e. no more than £7 to 8m

[Skidfingers McGonical]

Just spoken to Andy. He edited his post because he's now only 99% sure.

 

Makes sense if there is 1% of doubt, don't pass it of as fact.

 

For the record I don't see the prblem with Crouch, if he was to come back, he was a good outlay and I reckon he would be a perfect foil for Torres/Kuyt depending who he was playing alongside.

 

A good touch for a big man (Yes I know it's poor cliche but he has a good touch and can hold the ball up, and he is better than Heskey)

[The Dude Abides]

Crouch will be playing CL football next season. Why would he sign for Liverpool?

[Paul]

I still maintain Crouch leaving was the beginning of the end of the Rafalution. We should have worked far, far harder to keep him (assuming we worked to keep him at all).

 

I think the beginning of the end was prior to that: for me, the signing of Dirk was what started pushing Crouch towards the door and that's when the players realised that you can be really good - instrumental to how we play even - and yet Rafa will still move you on. That view was then cemented when he touted Xabi around two summers ago before selling him twelve months later. They all knew they had no job security whatsoever under Rafa's emotionally distant revolving door policy.

[J-V]

Crouch will be playing CL football next season. Why would he sign for Liverpool?

 

Overrated. Europa is where its at :whistle:

[silverlining]

I think the beginning of the end was prior to that: for me, the signing of Dirk was what started pushing Crouch towards the door and that's when the players realised that you can be really good - instrumental to how we play even - and yet Rafa will still move you on. That view was then cemented when he touted Xabi around two summers ago before selling him twelve months later. They all knew they had no job security whatsoever under Rafa's emotionally distant revolving door policy.

 

Slight exaggeration

[Moschops II]

I think the beginning of the end was prior to that: for me, the signing of Dirk was what started pushing Crouch towards the door and that's when the players realised that you can be really good - instrumental to how we play even - and yet Rafa will still move you on. That view was then cemented when he touted Xabi around two summers ago before selling him twelve months later. They all knew they had no job security whatsoever under Rafa's emotionally distant revolving door policy.

 

Wouldn't argue with any of that. Middle of the end then, I guess.

[Paul]

Slight exaggeration

 

Which bit? It's all opinion anyway. If you mean the instrumental to how we played bit, look at the points, goals and away wins in the seasons either side of his arrival and the effect the change in formation had on Gerrard.

[Original202]

I think the beginning of the end was prior to that: for me, the signing of Dirk was what started pushing Crouch towards the door and that's when the players realised that you can be really good - instrumental to how we play even - and yet Rafa will still move you on. That view was then cemented when he touted Xabi around two summers ago before selling him twelve months later. They all knew they had no job security whatsoever under Rafa's emotionally distant revolving door policy.

 

Agree with this. The summer of 2006 changed a lot of things for the worse. The 05-06 team was an excellent unit, very efficient at the back and effective up front.

 

We tried to sign some pacey players to give us an extra dimension as well as Kuyt but things never quite clicked.

 

Things never seemed to be settled after that. For all the talk of rotation, things were pretty steady up to that summer. After that, I think Rafa started to become less rational and even more unpredictable.

 

Incidentally, I wonder how things would have turned out had we been able to add Torres to the squad of 2006 instead of Kuyt and Bellamy?

[stringvest]

One thing I thought didn't happen enough last season was the breakdown of fast attacks due to a slow and cumbersome forward, so I'm all for bringing Crouch back so we can have exactly that happen in evry single game.

 

it happened in virtually every game.

[Guest PurpleNose]

He's English, could play with Torres or as a lone striker when Torres is rested or more likely - injured.Think we have missed the more direct option he can provide as well and we certainly missed his ability to hold up the ball away from home last season.

 

Or even more likely, sold.

[Guest LFD]

Or even more likely, sold.

 

Oh you bitch...

 

take that back!

 

El Nino is here to stay!

[Guest PurpleNose]

Oh you bitch...

 

take that back!

 

El Nino is here to stay!

 

I'd love to share your optimism.

[Xherdan]

Bring Bellamy in too.

[PaulMcC]

Crouch would be a good sub for us.

 

No point moving Gerrard from his best position to accomodate Crouch.

[hamstrung]

Makes sense if there is 1% of doubt, don't pass it of as fact.

 

There's only about a 10% chance of there being 1% doubt.

 

The big man's coming home.

[Guest LFD]

Crouch would be a good sub for us.

 

No point moving Gerrard from his best position to accomodate Crouch.

 

No but there would be point moving Gerrard from that position given we need him in centre midfield.

 

We need a ball player in centre midfield and Lucas isn't that man. Aquilani also looked vulnerable defensively in centre midfield.

 

If Gerrard was in centre midfield he can be fully involved in games, which he wasn't last season. That means he can influence games in defense as well as in attack and he'll be at the heart of the action, now Alonso has gone, I think that is where he is needed.

 

The big question is who should partner him, if Mascherano goes?

 

Crouch would be a great option to have. We could play 4-4-2, he could give us a more direct option, the ability to hold up the ball better - which would be a great asset to have awau from home and he can play as a lone striker, for when Torres is injured or rested. But if he comes we can't just keep him on the bench like last time, where he was vastly underised, in my opinion.

 

I personally can't see Harry selling him, especially to us.

[PaulMcC]

Gerrard isn't great defensively imo.

 

He's wasted in a centre midfield 2 imo.

[Guest LFD]

Gerrard isn't great defensively imo.

 

He's wasted in a centre midfield 2 imo.

 

He was wasted last season, when he was feeding off scraps higher up the field.

 

We need to produce the best LFC team and although I agree Gerrards best position is probably in a free role behind Torres. I don't think it would be best for the team.

 

I also think Gerrard is fine defensively in centre midfield, as he has shown us numerous times over the years. We dominate possession in most games in the league. Therefore we should be looking to ahve our best player on the ball in centre midfield and that is Gerrard. He'd give the side an extra attacking dimension playing in that position and I think in order to progress we need to be more expanive and attacking as a team, this is one way of achieving that.

 

Ideally I'd do something this, which is what we did against Pompey at home last season and destroyed them with our movement, passing and quality:

 

 

------------------------------Mascherano*-----------------------------------

 

Maxi--------------Gerrard----------------------Aquilani---------------Jovanovic

 

---------------------------------Torres----------------------------------------

 

*or replacement.

[Skidfingers McGonical]

There's only about a 10% chance of there being 1% doubt.

 

The big man's coming home.

 

Is this Jimmy Bullard all over again?

[Chinandeler Bong]

Seriously now, is he going to sign ?