I can't see Crouch coming now after Southampton bumped up his price tag. In today's press conference Parry shot down the prospects of him arriving. Sounds like Southampton will hold onto him until the Jan transfer window.
Most people my age are frightened of computers. They jab at them with their walking sticks...and then jump back quickly in case they retaliate.
It looks like Rafa is increasing his openness about wanting Crouchy. From liverpoolfc.tv: "I want to sign Peter Crouch," Rafa told liverpoolfc.tv. "I like this player and he would be a good addition to our squad. At this moment Rick Parry is talking to Southampton and hopefully something can be agreed. I would like Peter to come to Switzerland with us on our training camp." link to article
I watched a FSC replay of a S-ton game last night, and focused on PC. They fed high balls to him all game, from anywhere on the field. He got to an amazingly high percentage of them and was able to direct them to teammates more often than not. I know, I know...but that doesn't just mean he's tall, it also means he works at it, and I didn't see him point a finger at a teammate if the pass was not perfect. He's gangly looking, but seems a decent player - has more skill than just heading for sure. I just wonder if he realizes that there will be two or three ahead of him on the depth chart at Liverpool?
So Crouch's arrival is inevitable. . . . . . eeh. I guess he's quality for his type. Liverpool certainly doesn't have anything like him. I can live with it. While we know that S'ton WANT £8 million, that doesn't necessarily mean Liverpool will actually pay that. We know S'tom paid £1.5 million, and the last bids rejected were £6 million. A little expensive at £7, but he is relatively young.
I don't mind him, it's just that we're paying so much for someone who, at best, will be a situational substitute.
I know we had a problem against lesser teams in the league last year but I don't get the price tag either. Just have to trust Rafa on this, I guess.
I'm just starting Fox Soccer Channel's reairing of the Southampton v. Fullham match. I'll be keeping a close eye on Mr. Crouch.
Im telling you guys, crouch is zdeno chara re-visited. for those of you who are not canadian, chara is a young six foot-nine hockey defenceman who was heavily derided for being too tall and "looking funny" when he broke in. Last hockey season he won the best defenceman award. His good natural skills combined with his un-natural size make him unbeatable. he stops great players and toys with average ones. The way it worked with chara, he did exactly the same marked and steady improvement path that crouchy showed last year, and just kept doing it at exactly the same pace for 4 years in a row, which is what i expect his lankyness to do. By the time he finishes maturing hes gonna require 2 defenders to mark him, with all the good stuff that implies. remember, u heard it here first. crouchy prem poty in 2008. Thats my story and im sticking to it.
8 mil is too much for crouch. i read that gallas might be 'transferable' this summer. anybody knows how much it would require to make him wear a red shirt?
I'll be interested to see what you have to say - that;'s the game I watched as well. Of course, if you come to the conclusion that I'm a complete dope.....you won't be alone. ;^)
Don't need that comparison -- how about Niall Quinn. I still think he'll be quite useful in our side.
Okay, so I have to confess that I haven't been getting much sleep lately so I was only able to watch some of the match before passing out into a midday coma To respond to your post, I think you were right on. This is stating the obvious, but it's really different when you watch him while thinking about how he might fit in with our squad. The guy is fantastic at working those balls that come in the air, and not just in the penalty area. I remember Rafa talking about needing to win second balls and I think that Crouch could make some contributions there. Like you said, not only will he win the balls consistently because of his height, but he's clearly been trained to direct the ball as well. Another thing I noticed is that he's surprinsingly able to hold the ball up and keep possession just long enough to make a pass to a better ball handler. I saw this happen several times in the middle of the field when changing from defense to attack. If we are to assume the Southampton match against Fullham is representative of his performance overall, I think Crouch is someone who tries to make the best out of his very specific strengths (winning and directing balls in the air and providing very viable options as a target for crosses) while minimizing the damage done by his weaknesses (lack of pace, running with the ball). I still think 8 million pounds is a little steep, but I'm beginning to feel a little better about this. Plus, I might just have to get his shirt because sometimes he looks funny while trying to maintain possession.
Can someone with better knowledge of Rafa's history, speak to his experience of coaching a player of Crouch's unique strength?
The reason its suprising to see him hold the ball up, is becouse its suprising to see him hold the ball up. People that size cant dribble like that, so the brain discounts it even though you've just seen it. Face it he can dribble pass and shoot. Even if hes not supposed to be able to. imo he will continue to steadily improve those skills untill he is somewhere between above average and very good to excellent, and he could easily become the best in the air in the entire world on top of that. for now he is quite usefull, and his upside is the moon. i think its a great depth move. 5 mill woulda been better than 7 but i like it. its late, you need a goal, so you stick sami moro and crouch into the box looking for a gerrard corner or an alonso cross. seems workable.