Peter Crouch must start against Chelsea tonight if Liverpool want to win the game

Liverpool’s 4-2-3-1 formation must be dropped if Liverpool are to achieve the impossible and beat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

It has been proven time and time again this season that Liverpool’s 4-2-3-1 formation - with Steven Gerrard playing behind Fernando Torres - does not work against good defences.

Against the likes of Bolton, Newcastle, Wigan and other poor defences, it works like a charm, but against the world’s top defenders, Gerrard and Torres are regularly squeezed out of the game.

Liverpool need to throw a curve ball and play Gerrard on the right and have Crouch partner Torres. In the last round, Liverpool switched to 4-4-2 and ended up beating Arsenal 4-2.

The same thing can happen again against Chelsea. And whenever Crouch has played against Chelsea, he has made an impact.

Gerrard by his own admission had one of his worst games for Liverpool in the 4-2 victory against Arsenal.

The team does not need to rely solely on him to beat Chelsea, and for the sake of the balance of the team, Gerrard should play on the right tonight.

I would choose the following team:

------------------------------ Reina

Finnan -------------- Carra --------- Skrtl---------- Riise

--------------------------- Mascherano

Gerrard -------------------- Alonso ----------------- Babel

--------------------- Crouch ------ Torres

Crouch has been superb for Liverpool this season, and as I’ve been arguing endlessly all year, if you start Crouch, he will invariably score or create a goal.

Just look at his stats - 41 goals scored/created in the last 46 games! In his last 4starts alone, he’s scored 3 goals and created 1 goal!

Rafa made the right decision to start Crouch against Arsenal, and tonight he needs to make the same decision again.

Playing 4-2-3-1 tonight will be madness, and if Liverpool line up that way, the game will be lost.

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Peter Crouch: 38 goals scored/created in the last 43 starts. Keep ignoring him, Rafa!

After not starting a premiership game for nearly 4 months, Peter Crouch has scored against Arsenal and once again proved what a valuable asset he is to Liverpool FC. His latest goal also adds weight to something I have been arguing all season: Start Crouch and he will invariably score or create a goal for you.

Rafael Benitez has granted Crouch a pathetic total of 7 premiership starts this season, which is utterly indefensible. It gets worse – in all competitions, Crouch has been given a starting berth in a measly 16 games.

His other appearances have been 5 minute cameos as a sub, with precious little time to make any impact. Such treatment would be enough to shatter anyone’s confidence, but despite this, Crouch’s statistics remain impressive:

Premiership 2007/08
7 starts
Goals: 3
Assists: 3

CL Games
4 starts
Goals: 3

FA Cup
4 starts
Goals: 2
Assists: 1

Carling Cup
3 starts
Goals: 0

England
3 starts
Goals: 2

Totals – All competitions

Starts – 21
Goals – 10
Assists: 7

Crouch’s goal record from STARTS this season is 1 in 2. Add his assists on and he scores or creates a goal in almost every game he starts.

Combining Crouch’s DOMESTIC starting stats from last season and this season, we get the following results:

Starts – 43
Goals – 27
Assists – 11

So – Crouch has scored or created 38 goals from his last 43 starts!

Despite these excellent statistics, Crouch just can’t get a game for Liverpool. It's ridiculous really, and it is my view that Benitez has mismanaged Crouch over the last year, and failed to treat the player fairly when it comes to starting games.

I really hope Crouch stays, but he needs to be starting games regularly, and for the sake of his career, he should move on somewhere else where his talents will be properly appreciated.

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Peter Crouch has scored or created a goal in 83% of his starts in the last 2 seasons. STOP IGNORING HIM RAFA.

Rafael Benitez’s illogical and infuriating refusal to regularly start Peter Crouch is an abuse of his position as Liverpool Manager, especially since the statistics prove that Crouch almost guarantees a goal or an assist when he starts games.

Just what does Peter Crouch have to do to be treated fairly by Benitez?.

As Liverpool’s top scorer last season, Crouch was an integral part of the team that got to the Champions league final. This season, he has not been given a fair chance in any shape or form, ignominiously ignored for the tragically inept Dirk Kuyt.

Benitez has fatally mismanaged Crouch and his statistics from this season and last season irrefutably prove one thing: If you start Crouch he will invariably score or create a goal.

Since Benitez is so fond of statistics, here are a few about Crouch that prove his important, measurable impact on the team when he starts games.

Season 2006/07

Premership

a) 19 starts. 13 as sub. (Total = 32 games).
b) 9 goals and 8 assists in 32 games
c) Directly contributed to 17 goals in 19 starts = A goal every 1.1 games).
d) Directly contributed to 17 goals in 32 games overall = A goal every 1.8 games).

Overall, Crouch had a direct hand in a goal in 89% of the premiership games he STARTED and 50% of games overall (Starts and sub appearances combines).

Champions League

a) 8 CL starts. 6 as a sub (Total = 14 games).
b) 7 goals in 8 starts = A goal every 1.1 games.
c) 7 goals in 14 games overall = A goal every 2 games.

Overall, Crouch had a direct hand in a goal in 90% of the CL games he STARTED and 50% of games overall.

FA/Carling/Community Shield

a) 3 games started.
b) 2 goals scored.

Domestic Totals 2006/07

a) A total of 49 games played (30 starts. 19 sub appearances).
b) Contributed 18 goals and 9 assists.
c) Direct involvement in 27 goals.
d) 18 goals from 30 starts = A goal every 1.6 games.

Overall, Crouch had direct involvement in 27 goals from 49 games (start and sub). This means he directly contributed to a goal every 1.8 games in which he played a part.

If we take Crouch’s England form into account:

England

a) 8 games played (4 starts and 4 sub appearances)
b) 8 goals scored in 8 games (Averaging a goal a game).

Totals: Club and Country combined

a) A total of 57 games: played (34 starts. 23 sub appearances)
b) 26 goals and 9 assists in 57 games.
c) Direct involvement in 35 goals.
d) 26 goals in 34 total starts = A goal every 1. 3 games.

Overall, in all competitions, Crouch directly contributed to 35 goals in 57 games (start and sub), meaning he scored or created a goal every 1.6 games.

Averages

Premiership average:
STARTS: Scored/Assisted every 1.1 games.
START + SUB: Scored/assisted every 1.8 games.

CL average:
STARTS: Scored/Assisted every 1.1 games.
STARTS + SUB: Scored/Assisted every 2 games.

England average:
STARTS: Scored/Assisted every game.

The most compelling statistic is this:

Crouch’s 18 domestic goals and 7 of his assists came from starts.

Thus, if we disregard sub appearances, his DOMESTIC stats for Liverpool read like this:

Games started: 30
Goals scored: 18
Assists: 7

So, in 30 domestic starts, Crouch was directly responsible for 25 goals!!

Okay - let’s look at the current season:

Benitez has granted Crouch a pathetic total of 4 premiership starts this season. I repeat: 4 premiership starts. This is utterly indefensible. It gets worse – in all competitions, Crouch has been given a starting berth in a measly 14 games.

His other 10 appearances have been 5 or 10 minute cameos as a sub, with precious little time to make any impact. Such treatment would be enough to shatter anyone’s confidence, but despite this, Crouch’s statistics remain impressive:

Premiership 2007/08
4 starts
Goals: 1
Assists: 2

CL Games
4 starts
Goals: 3

FA Cup
2 starts
Goals: 2
Assists: 1

Carling Cup
3 starts
Goals: 0

England
3 starts
Goals: 2

Totals – All competitions

Starts – 16
Goals – 8
Assists: 3

Crouch’s goal record from STARTS this season is 1 in 2. Add his assists on and he scores or creates a goal every 1.5 games. This is in comparison to a mere 2 goals in 12 substitute appearances.

Combining Crouch’s DOMESTIC starting stats from last season and this season, we get the following results:

Starts – 43
Goals – 26
Assists – 10

So – Crouch has scored or created 36 goals from his last 43 starts!

ARE YOU LISTENING RAFA?

Crouch has scored or created a goal in 83% of his starts in the last 2 seasons.
He scores or creates a goal every 1.2 games.

ARE YOU LISTENING RAFA?

Dirk Kuyt has scored ONE GOAL IN the last 24 HOURS OF FOOTBALL! Yet, according to Benitez, he is worth starting ahead of Peter Crouch.

I am sick and tired of the obvious vendetta against Crouch. He MUST be given a chance, and given the mediocre options of Kuyt and Voronin, he must start every game from now to the end of the season.

It is not only WRONG, it is CRIMINAL to keep ignoring Crouch. In fact, I would argue that it is bordering on professional negligence. The job of any Manager in ANY industry is to utilise his workforce to achieve the best possible result for the company/team. Benitez is not doing that, and for whatever reason, he is cutting off his nose to spite his face.

Gerard Houllier had the same unpleasant streak, illustrated by his treatment of players like Jari Litmanen, Markus Babbel and Nicolas Anelka. Disturbingly, Benitez is displaying the same negative traits as Houllier: Illogical stubbornness syndrome; refusal to change tactics or approach; obsession with statistics like (‘But we had x amount of shots on goal!’); increasingly redundant excuses and blindly persisting with out of form/poor players whilst sidelining in form/better players for no solid reason.

If Benitez continues in this intractable manner, he will have something else in common with Houllier: The status of 'former Liverpool Manager'.

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Keep Reina, Agger, Carra, Alonso, Lucas, Benayoun and Torres - Scrap the rest.

Liverpool’s wretched season reached its nadir against Havant and Waterlooville last weekend, with the non-league minnows embarrassing Anfield's lumbering primadonnas and once again exposing the obvious truth: Liverpool are as far away from winning the premiership as they've ever been, and the club's deadwood is dragging the team into oblivion.

Four years into Rafa’s reign, and the rebuilding process is only just beginning. People may not accept that, but it is depressingly self-evident. In my view, the signing of Fernando Torres heralded the start of the real rebuilding process. Until players of Torres’ standard are consistently bought and developed, Liverpool will continue to wallow in premiership mediocrity.

There are, apparently, 60 players on Liverpool’s books. 60! Unfortunately, 95% of them are not good enough. To my mind, Liverpool have only 8 players who are capable of being part of a premiership winning squad - by that I mean they:

1. Are good enough in terms of quality and technique.
2. Have a positive, winning mentality
3. Do not unbalance the team.
4. Can form part of an effective 4-4-2/3-5-2/4-1-3-1-1 system.
5. Do not symbolise the counter-productive, ultra cautious 'safety first' approach so entrenched in Rafa Benitez's Liverpool.

The list of players Liverpool should keep is below:

Pepe Reina
Daniel Agger
Jamie Carragher
Xabi Alonso
Lucas Leiva
Yossi Benayoun
Peter Crouch
Fernando Torres

The following players should be sold and replaced:

Steve Finnan
A fine servant for the club, but does not offer enough going forward. A very good player, but needs to make way for the new breed of right-back i.e. marauding and offensive.

Sami Hyypia
My favourite player – a true Liverpool legend, but his time has passed. He should stay as cover and hopefully move into the coaching set-up too pass on his defensive genius to younger players.

Fabio Aurelio
Always injured and not reliable enough as a defender or an attacker. Great technique but too often flatters to deceive. Not the solution to the left back problem.

John Arne Riise
How the mighty have fallen. Once a potent attacking threat and a capable defender, but his form has tailed off badly over the last two seasons. Too often a passenger and a liability these days. Needs to go.

Alvaro Arbeloa
Competent, lightweight, unremarkable player who doesn’t really excel at anything, whether it’s defensive duty or attacking play. Sometimes, it’s hard to even remember he’s on the pitch. Doesn’t bring anything special to the team, and in the modern game, an effective right-back has to offer more, especially going forward.

Harry Kewell
He’s past it, pure and simple. It doesn’t matter how much faith Benitez has in him, the Harry Kewell of old died as soon as he signed his Liverpool contract. He’s lost his pace and sharpness and hardly ever beats his man these days. Liverpool don’t have time for him to ‘come good in the end’. The team needs a left wing specialist NOW, not next year.

Jermaine Pennant
Has vastly improved over the last year, but his goal return is negligible, as is his assist ratio. Pennant is a good player, but he belongs at Blackburn or Portsmouth, not Liverpool. Just compare him to a winger like Cristiano Ronaldo. Enough said. That is the quality Liverpool need on the wings. Pennant just doesn’t cut it.

Steven Gerrard
A great premiership player, but if Liverpool want to move to the next level, he needs to go. His presence restricts other players (especially Alonso) and stops Liverpool from becoming a fast moving, technically adept team. Gerrard’s positional indiscipline is legendary, and his inability to pay with his head and dictate the pace of the game is a problem.

Then there’s the perennial conundrum: Where does he play? In the centre; on the right; behind the front-man? Gerrard excels in none of these roles, and wherever he plays, the whole team has to dance to his tune. The bottom line is, if Gerrard plays well, the team plays well. If he has a bad patch, the team has a bad patch.

This needs to stop. Liverpool need all players taking responsibility instead of one player trying to do everything and overpowering the team. Just look at Arsenal after the apparently ‘irreplaceable’ Thierry Henry left. This is exactly the type of change Liverpool need.

The team is stagnating. There is no sign of forward progress in the league. Just look at the current debacle of a season: Gerrard has a purple patch of playing well, the team plays well. Gerrard’s form has dropped off again, the team can’t win!

On top of all this, he is a poor captain, and this has been proven again with the team’s diabolical performances in 2008 and his failure to motivate the team over the last few months.

Gerrard also needs to leave Liverpool for his own benefit – he is not improving as a player, and the problems with his game will not improve unless he abandons his comfort zone and tests himself in a different environment, where he feels the pressure of having to perform, instead of being guaranteed a starting place at Liverpool regardless of his form.

Javier Mascherano
In December I argued why it is madness to spend 17m on a defensive midfielder - my feelings have not changed. Liverpool's priority needs to be creative, attacking players, not more defensive-minded players. Furthermore, spending 17m on a defensive midfielder is indicative of the negative, 'safety first' culture so depressingly evident at Anfield these days.

I don't care how much Man United spend on Carrick or Hargreaves - they can do so because they already have the creative side of the team sorted out.

I have no doubt that Liverpool could find an excellent DM for 8-10m; to suggest otherwise is ridiculous. This would leave 7m left over to put towards creative players. If the club can get Mascherano for 10m all inclusive, then go for it. If not, let him go and find someone else.

Andriy Voronin
A sprightly player who always tries his best but he is just not good enough for Liverpool. Even as a fourth striker, Liverpool need more quality. Taking a player on a free just to make up the numbers should not be part of Liverpool’s buying strategy.

Dirk Kuyt
Has to go. It’s that simple. Not good enough for Liverpool and will never be a free-flowing goalscorer. Who cares if he runs 20 miles a game – his job is to SCORE GOALS, and on the front, he is an utter failure. He reminds me of Emile Heskey, except Heskey (amazingly) scored goals occasionally!

Ryan Babel
Will never make it at Liverpool. The excuses for his dire performances are already verging on the cliché:

‘Thierry Henry took a year to settle’
’Cristiano Ronaldo didn’t set the premiership alight in his first season’
’He just needs time to adapt to the league’
’Next season we’ll see the real Ryan Babel’

I don’t buy it. Babel himself admits that he ‘can’t cope’ with the pace of the premiership. If he doesn’t believe in himself, then Liverpool are in real trouble. Such a defeatist attitude is not what Liverpool need. I haven’t seen anything this season that suggests Babel will be a future success. And if he was so great, why did Ajax sell him in the first place, and why did Arsene Wenger cool his interest?

Spending 11m on Babel was a mistake, as was spending 11m on Emile Heskey, and 10m on El Hadji Diouf.

Rafa (or whoever the club’s next Manager will be) needs to be ruthless - get rid of all of the above players and use the money to buy quality players (especially attacking players) who will fit into a system that will bring league success.

And it’s not just about spending huge amounts of money. Tomas Rosicky and Alexander Hleb cost Arsenal about 12m combined. They are superbly creative, technically gifted players – just the type of quality Liverpool should be buying.

It is possible to find the right players at the right place if you have an excellent scouting system in place. Liverpool clearly do not.

And it’s not even the scouting system that is most important here; Liverpool need a complete change of philosophy. At the moment, the team is built around defensive-minded players, which was also the way under Gerard Houllier.

This needs to change. Like Arsenal, the team needs to be built around attacking players and the emphasis has to be on offensive play.

Until this happens, Liverpool will never win the Premiership.

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John Aldridge: Crouch must stay

Liverpool goalscoring legend John Aldridge has joined the ever growing band of people calling for Peter Crouch to be given a fair chance in the Liverpool team, arguing that Crouch must not be sold in January and should be given a regular starting berth alongside Fernando Torres.

As I have repeatedly argued in my articles, Crouch's impact on Liverpool is beyond dispute, and Aldo agrees:

"Crouch’s goals per minute ratio must be incredible because he’s not playing every game and when he is involved it tends to be as a substitute but he’s still scoring plenty. The goal he got on Wednesday night [Against Porto] was a perfect example of what he can do. Some defences just don’t know how to cope with him because of his height and they become so confused that he ends up scoring a free header from the edge of the six yard box".

Against Porto, Liverpool lost their way in the second half, and the game could easily have been lost. It was only with the introduction of Crouch and Harry Kewell that things started to change. Aldridge observed:

"It was tight and it was nip and tuck at 1-1 and there was a time when the game could have gone either way. But then...with Peter Crouch and Harry Kewell coming on and... everything changed and Liverpool ended up running out comfortable winners. I think the way Liverpool went on to score three more goals against a side which doesn’t normally concede goals shows just how important Crouch is".

It is obvious to everyone except Rafa that Liverpool's best strike partnership is Crouch and Fernando Torres. Ignoring Crouch for terminally ineffective Dirk Kuyt (who plays more like a midfielder than a striker) is ridiculous, especially given Crouch's superior goal stats, technique and team play. Aldridge also believes that Crouch/Torres should be Liverpool's number one strike team:

"I’ve been banging on all season about how I think Crouch and Torres is Liverpool’s best partnership up front and I’d love to see them being given a run of games together. I know Rafa likes to play Voronin or Kuyt in behind Torres but, to me, we just look a much greater threat and much more likely to score when he goes with Crouch. Whenever I look at Liverpool’s striking options I keep on coming to the same conclusions – Crouch and Torres are definitely the best bet".

This backed up by the stats, with Crouch and Torres scoring 15 goals and providing 2 assists in 23 combined starts. This strike rate blows any other Liverpool partnership out of the water, yet Benitez continues to ignore it.

In the last couple of days, Benitez has stated publicly that Crouch is not for sale. I would love to believe that Benitez is being sincere, but given his second rate treatment of Crouch this season, I do not believe it for a second. John Aldridge also wants Crouch to stay:

"There is so much speculation that Crouch might move in January. The manager says he has no problem with the players and the player says he has no problem with the manager so hopefully Crouch will still be with Liverpool after the transfer window has closed because I think it will be good for the club if he is".

The Bolton game this weekend is exactly the type of game in which Crouch should be playing. He was bought, in part, to provide a threat in the more 'physical' games against the likes of Bolton and Blackburn. I have no doubt that Crouch will be on the bench again though, ignored in favour of Dirk Kuyt, who scored last when the ball rebounded off his legs and ended up in the net.

Clearly a greater goal threat than Crouchie!

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Indefensible: Benitez ignores Crouch again despite 10 goals in 12 CL games

What does Peter Crouch have to do to be treated fairly by Rafael Benitez?! Despite being Liverpool’s most effective striker with 10 goals in the last 12 Champions League games, he was unjustifiably dumped on the bench *again* for the visit of Porto.

What other Manager in world football leaves their top CL scorer on the bench?! Crouch's latest snub is yet more evidence of the negligent mismanagement of a true Liverpool FC asset and arguably proves that Benitez is putting his personal feelings ahead of what is best for the team.

To illustrate my point, let’s examine the facts:

1. Before Porto, Crouch had scored 10 goals in his last 12 Champions League games. That figure is now 11 goals in the last 13 CL games.

2. Crouch scored 2 goals in the previous CL game – The 8-0 thrashing of Besiktas.

3. In his last 6 games (4 starts and 2 sub appearances) Crouch has scored 5 goals and provided one assist. That is direct contribution to a goal in *every game he has been involved in*.

But this is not good enough for Benitez, who preferred Andrei Voronin, a player who has scored 1 goal in his last 12 games for Liverpool.

Over the last year, Benitez has treated Crouch in a disgraceful manner, persistently dumping him on the bench, irrespective of how he performs.

Before Crouch scored against Porto, it had been 19 months since he scored from coming off the bench, yet the statistics prove that if you start Crouch, he will invariably score or create a goal. This is backed up by last season’s statistics, with Crouch scoring 18 goals and providing 7 assists in 30 starts.

Benitez must surely be aware that Crouch does not offer much threat when coming off the bench, so why does he persist in benching him? With such behaviour, Benitez is setting Crouch up to fail. Surely the Manager’s job is to get the best out of his players, not keep putting them in a situation where they have minimal impact on the team?!

It is clear that in footballing terms, Peter Crouch is having a significant impact at Liverpool despite the ignominy of being repeatedly ignored. It is also obvious that footballing ability has NOTHING to do with Benitez’s continual snubbing of Crouch.

Every time Crouch has got going this season, Benitez as unceremoniously dumped him on the bench. Prime example: Crouch scores 2 against Besiktas; creates a goal in the win against Fulham; scores against Austria and then scores a sublime goal against Croatia.

This was a player on a roll, scoring and creating goals. What does Benitez do? Does he capitalize on the abilities of a player who is clearly high on confidence? No. He dumps him on the bench for next 2 games.

It’s almost as if Benitez wants Crouch to fail, as has done everything he can to damage Crouch’s confidence this season. To his credit though, Crouch keeps coming back and delivering the goods, which illustrates his admirable strength of character – a trait that all proper LFC players possess

Benitez's treatment of Peter Crouch is indefensible and defies logic or reason. I support Rafa in his spat against the US owners, but if he is indeed sacked over the issue, he will merely experience the bitter taste of his own medicine.

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Crouchie exposes the technical ineptitude of England's prima-donnas

Peter Crouch’s performance against Croatia proved once again that it is utter madness to consider selling him in the January transfer window.

Crouch was the only player to emerge from the Croatia train wreck with any credit, scoring a goal that illustrated the excellent technical prowess that puts so-called ‘world class’ players like Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard to shame.

Crouch has now scored 14 goals in 24 games for England, and that tally is gleaned from only 11 starts! Not good enough? Well, what about Crouch’s Champions league form? He’s now scored 10 goals in the last 12 games! Still not good enough?! What about 18 goals and 7 assists from 30 starts last season?!

It is patently obvious that Peter Crouch is having a consistent and measurable impact on Liverpool and England. As such, it would be complete and utter lunacy to sell him.

In my last article, I proved with indisputable facts that Crouch is a Liverpool asset:

http://www.liverpool-kop.com/2007/11/rafas-irrational-vendetta-against-peter.html

I will now go one further and say that I believe Crouch is the most technically gifted England player in England. The ‘good touch for a big man’ cliché just belittles the fact that Crouch is clearly streets ahead of his more illustrious England colleagues.

As I said in the above article, if you start Crouch, he will invariably score or create a goal for you. This happened again with England, and Crouch should start again against Newcastle on Saturday. He deserves his place, his confidence will be high despite the defeat, and he does not need to be rested since Benitez has kept him on the bench for most of the season thus far.

Crouch must stay, and Rafa must get over his apparent dislike of Crouch and start making decisions that benefit the team and not him personally.

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Crouch for sale as Rafa’s irrational vendetta continues

Rafael Benitez’s vendetta against Peter Crouch continues apace with newspaper reports claiming that he plans to sell the striker in January.

There is no excuse for the Spaniard's treatment of Crouch. Indeed, an in depth analysis statistics from last season prove beyond doubt that Crouch is one of Liverpool’s most effective players.

Despite Crouch's obvious worth, he is seemingly on his way out of Anfield. Jason Burt in The Independent claims:

“Liverpool set the ball rolling for Crouch's expected transfer by contacting a number of Premier League clubs earlier this week, partly in an effort to drive the price for the 26-year-old as high as possible".

This may just be typical press speculation; however, given the sheer volume of news agencies carrying the same story, there is probably truth to the story.

As Liverpool’s top scorer last season, Crouch was an integral part of the team that got to the Champions league final. This season, he has not been given a fair chance in any shape or form, ignominiously ignored for the tragically inept Dirk Kuyt.

No one can expect to walk straight into the team, but Crouch’s incrementally increasing goals tally merited, at the very least, a fair crack of the whip. Instead, Crouch has been dumped on the scrapheap and Benitez has basically cut off his nose to spite his face.

Quite simply, Benitez has fatally mismanaged Crouch and his statistics from last season prove that. And since Benitez is so fond of statistics, here are a few about Peter Crouch that prove his important, measurable impact on the team:

Season 2006/07

PREMIERSHIP

a) 19 premiership starts. 13 as a substitute (Total = 32 games).
b) 9 goals and 8 assists in 32 games
c) Directly responsible for 17 goals in 19 starts (A goal every 1.1 games).
d) Directly responsible for 17 goals in 32 games overall. (A goal every 1.8 games).

Overall, Crouch had a direct hand in a goal in 55% of the games he played.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

a) 8 CL starts. 6 as a substitute (Total = 14 games).
b) 7 goals in 8 starts = A goal every 1.1 games.
c) 7 goals in 14 games overall = A goal every 2 games.

Overall, Crouch had a direct hand in a goal in 50% of the games he played.

FA/COMMUNITY/CARLING CUPS

a) 3 games started. 2 goals scored.

DOMESTIC TOTALS FOR 2006/07

a) A total of 49 games played (30 starts. 19 sub appearances).
b) Contributed 18 goals and 9 assists.
c) Direct involvement in 27 goals.
d) 18 goals from 30 starts = A goal every 1.6 games.

Overall, Crouch had direct involvement in 27 goals from 49 games (start and sub). This means he directly contributed to a goal every 1.8 games in which he played a part.

If we take Crouch’s England form into account:

ENGLAND

a) 8 games played (4 starts and 4 sub appearances)
b) 8 goals scored in 8 games (Averaging a goal a game).

TOTALS: CLUB AND COUNTRY COMBINED

a) A total of 57 games: played (34 starts. 23 sub appearances)
b) 26 goals and 9 assists in 57 games.

c) Direct involvement in 35 goals.

d) 26 goals in 34 total starts = A goal every 1. 3 games.

Overall, Crouch had direct involvement in 35 goals in 57 games (start and sub), meaning he contributed to a goal every 1.6 games.

AVERAGES

Premiership average:
STARTS: Scored/Assisted every 1.1 games.
START + SUB: Scored/assisted every 1.8 games.

CL average:
STARTS: Scored/Assisted every 1.1 games.
STARTS + SUB: Scored/Assisted every 2 games.

England average:
STARTS: Scored/Assisted every game.

The most compelling statistic is this:

All of Crouch’s 18 domestic goals and 7 of his assists came from starts.

Thus, we can disregard sub appearances, and his stats for Liverpool read like this:

Games started: 30
Goals scored: 18
Assists: 7

So, in 30 domestic starts, Crouch was directly responsible for 25 goals!! That is almost scoring or creating a goal every game!

But this is not good enough for Benitez! If any other striker in the world had that kind of average, they’d be praised and encouraged, instead of ignored and dumped on the sidelines.

Crouch’s statistics compare favourably with all the top strikers in the premiership, and if anything can be gleaned from his stats last season it is this: Start Crouch and he will score or create a goal for you.

The foundation of Benitez’s mismanagement of Crouch is his ridiculous rotation system. The stats don’t lie! As illustrated above, Crouch scored or created 25 goals in 30 starts!

Yet despite this, Benitez continually used him as a sub, and that has continued into this season. The fact the Crouch scores more goals when he starts can also be seen this season, with a comparison of CL and premiership games:

PL Games: 6 (2 starts – 4 sub)
Goals: 0.
Assists: 1

CL Games: 5 (4 starts – 1 sub)
Goals: 3

3 goals in 4 CL starts versus no goals in 2 Premiership starts.

It is plainly obvious that Crouch should start more games, and it is no coincidence that when Benitez HAS started Crouch this season, Liverpool have played better. Benitez should have built on Crouch’s massive progress last season and allowed him to blossom. Instead, he has developed some kind of personal vendetta against the player, and proceeded to trample on his confidence at every opportunity.

Yes, Crouch has a bad game every now and then, but what player doesn’t? After last season, Crouch was entitled to expect a fairer chance this season. If he has played below par in the odd game this season, it is because Benitez had damaged his confidence with his mismanagement of the player.

Indeed, Benitez’s penchant for mismanaging strikers extended to Fernando Torres earlier this season, with the Spaniard keeping him on the bench for two crucial league games (that Liverpool needed to win but didn't) then recalling him for a comparatively unimportant Carling Cup game!

So why has Crouch become an outcast on the verge of being sold? If you believe the press, it’s because of some kind of attitude problem. Indeed, John Edwards in the Daily Mail stated:

“The Liverpool manager believes Crouch's status as an England player has turned his head, to the detriment of the work ethic that made him such a valuable team player”

Complete and utter codswallop.

There is absolutely no evidence to back this up. Furthermore, Crouch has been a model professional at Liverpool, and all his previous Managers have nothing but glowing praise for the player.

The accusation that Crouch’s attitude is to blame is vicious slander designed to twist the minds of fans and hasten his exit from Anfield. I have no idea if this myth is perpetuated by Liverpool or Benitez, or if it is just press sensationalism. Either way, it is out of order.

The reason Crouch is on the blacklist has nothing to do with his ability and everything to do with his tame public comments about Benitez’s rotation policy earlier in the season:

“There are times when it can be frustrating, but I fully understand the manager’s thinking and when called upon, I just have to make sure I am ready. Hopefully I can play a few more games than I have been doing, but I’m not too frustrated".

Hardly a damaging rebuke; However, Benitez wasted no time responding:

"It is fair to say that he [Peter Crouch] has to evolve with the team - and show the right character and mentality".

Show the right character and mentality?! What a joke and insult to the player. That is *exactly* what Crouch has been doing ever since his arrival at Liverpool. Indeed, he has been a superb professional. It is Benitez’s pig-headed stubbornness which is the problem here. Basically, if you criticize his rotation policy, you are out.

Incidentally, Momo Sissoko also made public comments recently about Benitez’s incessant rotation and guess what – Sissoko is also linked with a move away in January. Coincidence? I think not.

As the statistics above prove, there is no logical or acceptable reason for Liverpool to sell Peter Crouch. He offers something different to every other Striker in the premiership. He scores goals. He creates goals. He has superb technique and touch, and can only get better.

Dirk Kuyt is the striker who should be sold, not Crouch. Kuyt’s statistics and goal threat pale in comparison to Crouch, and this season, his limitations have been cruelly exposed.

But this will not matter to Benitez; he will persist with the pedestrian Kuyt and get rid of Crouch, despite Andrei Voronin and Kuyt being very similar types of players.

If Benitez sells Crouch, it will be one of his worst Managerial decisions, and will once again expose the Houllieresque irrational stubbornness that will eventually be his downfall.

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The emasculation of Peter Crouch

Rafael Benitez’s cruel emasculation of Peter Crouch becomes more disgraceful with each passing game...

The Spaniard's pig-headed, Houllier-esque refusal to utilise Crouch for more than a few minutes at a time is further evidence of the tragic flaw that will ultimately lead to his downfall...

That flaw is irrational Stubbornness.

The Besiktas debacle is a prime example: The toothless Voronin/Kuyt partnership carried zero goal threat and the game was crying out for something different. Crouch could have been that difference, yet Benitez chose to ignore him until the 83rd minute.

Crouch was given *7 minutes* to try and influence the game. Whilst this was clearly an insult to the player and probably damaged his confidence further, the more worrying aspect was Benitez’s seemingly abject stupidity.

Prior to Besiktas, Crouch had scored 8 goals in the 10 previous champion’s league games. What Manager with any nous would ignore a striker with that record, especially when the team was crying out for goals?!

It is this obdurate inflexibility that is hampering Liverpool’s progress. Whether it’s the laughably ineffective rotation system or the sidelining of in-form players, Benitez is his own worst enemy, and will never win the league with Liverpool unless he adapts his methods.

Dumped on the scrapheap

There is just no excuse for the treatment of Peter Crouch. As Liverpool’s top scorer last season, Crouch was an integral part of the team that got to the Champion’s league final. He has not been given a fair chance this season in any shape or form, and that is what is most disappointing.

No one can expect to walk straight into the team. However, Crouch’s incrementally increasing goals tally merited, at the very least, a fair crack of the whip. Instead, Crouch has been dumped on the scrapheap and Benitez has basically cut his nose off to spite his face.

The reason Crouch is on the blacklist has nothing to do with his ability and everything to do with his tame public comments about Benitez’s rotation policy, and example of which is below:

“There are times when it can be frustrating, but I fully understand the manager’s thinking and when called upon, I just have to make sure I am ready. Hopefully I can play a few more games than I have been doing, but I’m not too frustrated".

Hardly a damaging rebuke; However, Benitez wasted no time responding:

"It is fair to say that he [Peter Crouch] has to evolve with the team - and show the right character and mentality".

Show the right character and mentality?! What a joke. That is *exactly* what Crouch has been doing ever since his arrival at Liverpool. Indeed, he has been a model professional. It is Benitez who has made the problem here, not Crouch. In addition, it is Benitez’s treatment of Crouch that has led to inconsistency of performance and shattered confidence.

Now I am not the biggest fan of Peter Crouch, however, I passionately believe that fairness is of the utmost importance when it comes to dealing with footballers, or indeed anyone. Benitez clearly took offence at what he perceived to be a public attack, and consequently banished Crouch to the footballing wilderness.

Professional negligence

Gerard Houllier had the same unpleasant streak, illustrated by his treatment of players like Jari Litmanen, Markus Babbel and Nicolas Anelka. Disturbingly, Benitez is displaying the same negative traits as Houllier: Illogical stubbornness syndrome; refusal to change tactics or approach; obsession with statistics like (But we had x amount of shots on goal); increasingly redundant excuses and blindly persisting with out of form/poor players whilst sidelining in form/better players for no solid reason.

Whilst Fernando Torres is injured, the Voronin/Kuyt partnership flounders and Liverpool are struggling for goals, Peter Crouch MUST be given a chance. It is not only WRONG, it is CRIMINAL to keep ignoring Crouch. In fact, I would argue that it is bordering on professional negligence. The job of any Manager in ANY industry is to utilise his workforce to achieve the best possible result for the company/team.

Benitez is not doing this, and if he continues in this intractable manner, he will have something else in common with Houllier: The status of 'former Liverpool Manager'.

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