Crouch in turmoil

LONDON – Like a pub with no beer, a striker who cannot score goals is of limited use.Peter Crouch joined Liverpool from Southampton for seven million pounds ($12 million) after claiming 12 league goals for the south coast side last season.

In 15 competitive matches this season, Crouch has yet to score for the European champions. Crouch’s inability to hit the target has now stretched to more than 18 hours and become a running gag for English soccer fans outside the “Red” half of Liverpool.So desperate is Crouch to get his name on the scoresheet that on Saturday he grabbed the ball when Liverpool were awarded a penalty early in a league game against Portsmouth.True to form, his spot kick was saved although Boudewijn Zenden scored from the rebound in a 3-0 Liverpool win.”I wasn’t going to hide when it was given, that’s something I will never do.I just have to keep plugging away and if I do that, then I’m sure it will come,” he said.Crouch’s goal drought would not have become such a cause celebre were it not for his physique.At two metres (6 feet 7 inches), he is tall for a striker and his lack of weight has led rival fans to compare him to a praying mantis and a giraffe.At speed, he often looks gangly and uncoordinated, but he has excellent touch and his work rate has not been affected by his lack of goals.Now 24, Crouch has rarely stayed long at any club moving from Tottenham Hotspur, where he was a trainee, via Queens Park Rangers, Portsmouth, Aston Villa and Southampton before arriving at Anfield.- Nampa-ReutersCrouch’s inability to hit the target has now stretched to more than 18 hours and become a running gag for English soccer fans outside the “Red” half of Liverpool.So desperate is Crouch to get his name on the scoresheet that on Saturday he grabbed the ball when Liverpool were awarded a penalty early in a league game against Portsmouth.True to form, his spot kick was saved although Boudewijn Zenden scored from the rebound in a 3-0 Liverpool win.”I wasn’t going to hide when it was given, that’s something I will never do.I just have to keep plugging away and if I do that, then I’m sure it will come,” he said.Crouch’s goal drought would not have become such a cause celebre were it not for his physique.At two metres (6 feet 7 inches), he is tall for a striker and his lack of weight has led rival fans to compare him to a praying mantis and a giraffe.At speed, he often looks gangly and uncoordinated, but he has excellent touch and his work rate has not been affected by his lack of goals.Now 24, Crouch has rarely stayed long at any club moving from Tottenham Hotspur, where he was a trainee, via Queens Park Rangers, Portsmouth, Aston Villa and Southampton before arriving at Anfield.- Nampa-Reuters