Peter Crouch signs for Spurs

[Pinto]

Seems kind of underwhelming after all the big names we have been linked to in the past. While I don't think Crouch will be awful he just won't be magical like our great strikers of the past.

For me it signals us as just wanting to survive the Prem this year instead of finishing top six with a more risky buy. My guess is if this move goes through we will doom(maybe doom is too dramatic but you get the point) ourselves to 9th-12th instead of maybe getting Hunter or Negrado and maybe moving up a couple of places if they play well and getting 6th-8th. Granted this could all change with some other key moves but for me Crouch just doesn't score the big goals against quality opposition that would put us over the top and get us into the top 6.

The only real plus is with this move I think we are pretty safe from the bottom half of the table which with the trouble we had at the start of last year might not be such a bad thing.

 

[kishman]

Like Peter Crouch or not, one thing for sure is that he'll bring more to the team than Darren Bent. (btw i am not slating DB in any way)

 

[danielneeds]

Seems kind of underwhelming after all the big names we have been linked to in the past. While I don't think Crouch will be awful he just won't be magical like our great strikers of the past.

For me it signals us as just wanting to survive the Prem this year instead of finishing top six with a more risky buy. My guess is if this move goes through we will doom(maybe doom is too dramatic but you get the point) ourselves to 9th-12th instead of maybe getting Hunter or Negrado and maybe moving up a couple of places if they play well and getting 6th-8th. Granted this could all change with some other key moves but for me Crouch just doesn't score the big goals against quality opposition that would put us over the top and get us into the top 6.

The only real plus is with this move I think we are pretty safe from the bottom half of the table which with the trouble we had at the start of last year might not be such a bad thing.

That's rubbish, he scored for Liverpool in big games against Chelsea and Arsenal.

 

[davidmatzdorf]

For me it signals us as just wanting to survive the Prem this year instead of finishing top six with a more risky buy. My guess is if this move goes through we will doom(maybe doom is too dramatic but you get the point) ourselves to 9th-12th instead of maybe getting Hunter or Negrado and maybe moving up a couple of places if they play well and getting 6th-8th...

The only real plus is with this move I think we are pretty safe from the bottom half of the table which with the trouble we had at the start of last year might not be such a bad thing.

I really don't get this logic. With our current squad, starting on 1 February, we were the 5th best team in the league. Only a few people, most of whom seem to have an ironclad detestation of Crouch based mainly on his appearance and inelegance, seriously maintain that Bent adds more to our team play than Crouch. To be sure, Bent is a more prolific goalscorer, but we cannot find any suitable strike partners for him within our current squad. The team doesn't deliver good results, at least not at home, with Darren Bent in the side.

But that isn't really my point. We have sold absolutely no one of importance yet this Summer. We have bought only talented kids - again, no one of crucial importance for the upcoming season. We presently have the same squad that was 5th best after the January transfers. Unless you are suggesting that Crouch will make our team play worse, in which case you are essentially implying that Redknapp is an idiot 4 times over, how does signing Crouch, probably replacing Bent, make us a team "doomed" to finish 9th-12th?

And don't give me that spurious "all of the other clubs are strengthening" argument or I'll re-post my demolition of that shibboleth for the third time :wink:.

 

[worcestersauce]

I'm happy for you.....but i'm not convinced and what really did happen;

Greaves, Chivers, Sheringham, Archibald, Keane, Berbatov, Lineker, Klinsmann, Defoe, Allen, etc

and then...

Crouch :doh:

Michey I don't agree with you on Crouch but thats a good point well made just do one thng for me, take Defoe out of the list he shouldn't be in the same list as Greaves.

 

[Pinto]

I really don't get this logic. With our current squad, starting on 1 February, we were the 5th best team in the league. Only a few people, most of whom seem to have an ironclad detestation of Crouch based mainly on his appearance and inelegance, seriously maintain that Bent adds more to our team play than Crouch. To be sure, Bent is a more prolific goalscorer, but we cannot find any suitable strike partners for him within our current squad. The team doesn't deliver good results, at least not at home, with Darren Bent in the side.

But that isn't really my point. We have sold absolutely no one of importance yet this Summer. We have bought only talented kids - again, no one of crucial importance for the upcoming season. We presently have the same squad that was 5th best after the January transfers. Unless you are suggesting that Crouch will make our team play worse, in which case you are essentially implying that Redknapp is an idiot 4 times over, how does signing Crouch, probably replacing Bent, make us a team "doomed" to finish 9th-12th?

And don't give me that spurious "all of the other clubs are strengthening" argument or I'll re-post my demolition of that shibboleth for the third time :wink:.

Last year was last year. We aren't given any points for playing well at the end of last year.

Say what you want but do you think Crouch is a true match winner like Berbatov(whoever you think is a matchwinner for Spurs) was? For me he is servicable but not magical and feel free to explain to me how Man City is not getting better? They look an awful lot like what Chelsea did when they came into money and they won the league after spending so much money. Do I think Man City is going to win the league no but they are getting better and they were only one spot behind us last year so do I think they are better than us now, yeah but not by a lot and not if we make a move or two to improve our selves in key areas we are right there with them.

I also don't seem to recall saying I hated Crouch, just that I didn't think he was enough to get us over the top and put us into the top 6 is all. If you think otherwise fine by me but I don't hate the guy just not in love with him is all.

Anyway, if Crouch was so good for Liverpool why did they let him go? If Crouch is so good why is Pompey getting rid of him for only 10 million for a English international striker? Seems to me he is exactly what I am saying he is, decent but not a matchwinner. Maybe he will fit in with our club better than Bent but I just don't see Crouch scoring 20 plus goals a year or even getting more than 8-10 assists even with Keane and Defoe being able to play with him.

Our team was built to play on the ground and Crouch is built to play in the air so while he will give us a different option I just don't see the option really helping us get over the top of a very hard league to score goals in and get 3 points week in and week out.

 

[BringBack_leGin]

He pushed for the transfer from Liverpool because they had Torres and were signign Keane and NGog.
He is leaving Portsmouth because he is pushing for a transfer and they can't afford to keep him.
Apart from Barcelona, who just don't surrender possession therefore are in no need, even teams that play on the ground need somebody who can hold onto the ball under pressure, something that Crouch does well.

 

[Steady_nethercott]

He pushed for the transfer from Liverpool because they had Torres and were signign Keane and NGog.
He is leaving Portsmouth because he is pushing for a transfer and they can't afford to keep him.
Apart from Barcelona, who just don't surrender possession therefore are in no need, even teams that play on the ground need somebody who can hold onto the ball under pressure, something that Crouch does well.

:clap:

man utd last year away was example of this

 

[Pinto]

He pushed for the transfer from Liverpool because they had Torres and were signign Keane and NGog.
He is leaving Portsmouth because he is pushing for a transfer and they can't afford to keep him.
Apart from Barcelona, who just don't surrender possession therefore are in no need, even teams that play on the ground need somebody who can hold onto the ball under pressure, something that Crouch does well.

Why the need for NGog or Keane if you have someone better?

Not that I know much about Pompey's money problems but didn't they just get a ton of money for Glen Johnson and Diarra before that? Just can't see them really needing to offload Crouch that badly with that much money coming to them already in the last year.

Anyway, I don't think he is the worst striker in the world or anything just that he isn't a matchwinner that can put us over the top. I hope I am mistaken and he scores 25 goals and has 15 assists but I just can't see it.

 

[morriss]

"25 goals and has 15 assists",

We're not a big enough team to sign players like that.

In fact name me 5 players that had that ratio last season...(any league)

 

[BringBack_leGin]

Sorry if I appear snotty Pinto, it's not really aimed at you but today's reading has been frustrating with a plethora of people saying silly things on a wide range of issues throughout various threads.

If Crouch signing means that him and Defoe, between them, get 25 league goals between them or more, and on top of that we get another 15 between the remaining strikers and 20 from midfield/ defence in total, then he's worth it. With our good defence, that kind of goal scoring would see us in the top 5 at least, as shown by the 06/07 season.

 

[Bonjour]

... scores 25 goals and has 15 assists but I just can't see it.

Slightly unrealistic target tbh.

 

[davidmatzdorf]

Last year was last year. We aren't given any points for playing well at the end of last year.

That doesn't address my point. It's the same squad. It should be able to play football at a similar level. That level, sustained over the course of a season, would have us finish 4th, 5th or 6th.

There is no basis, other than generalised dolefulness at the absence of a "big-name signing", for your contention that a squad that averaged 1.69 points per league match after Redknapp arrived, corresponding to 63-64 points over a season, should suddenly start playing like a 12th place team.

There's an even more extreme argument along the same lines, if I only count league matches after 1 February, which is when our current squad was finalised. After then, we averaged 1.93 points per league game, which corresponds to 73-74 points over a full season. That's top 4 form.

Say what you want but do you think Crouch is a true match winner like Berbatov(whoever you think is a matchwinner for Spurs) was?

I don't think we need a match-winner. I think we need a striker who can fulfil the roles that are missing from our squad, the principle ones being holding the ball up in an advanced position, playing-in a strike partner and occupying the attentions of one or two defenders so midfielders can join in the attack. Crouch ticks all of those boxes.

I've been saying since last Winter that I have no interest in players who can, by themselves, "take us up to the next level", if that means destabilising the squad again. We need the squad to be left intact to learn to play as a team, except for the gaps, which include a striker who can do what Crouch can do.

...feel free to explain to me how Man City is not getting better? They look an awful lot like what Chelsea did when they came into money and they won the league after spending so much money. Do I think Man City is going to win the league no but they are getting better and they were only one spot behind us last year so do I think they are better than us now, yeah but not by a lot and not if we make a move or two to improve our selves in key areas we are right there with them.

Well, you did ask, so here is the post in question again. It has nothing to do with Man City or any specific rival. It's about the principle that "all of our rivals are strengthening", which is provably incorrect:

This is a myth, you know, one that we read every year. Using a bit of logic: if everyone were able to strengthen their squads every Summer, then it would mean that the average quality of footballer in the league were rising significantly every year. That isn't true, obviously - over decades, footballers have become fitter, but there isn't a big jump in overall quality, every year, year-on-year.

What really happens is that every club tries to strengthen its squad, but some fail, badly, and their squad becomes worse. A good example last season was Tottenham Hotspur FC, where a great deal of money was spent on individual upgrades that turned out to make up a much worse team, until it got sorted out in January. This Summer, some of our close competitors - Villa, Everton, Man City, Fulham, West Ham - will improve and some will balls it up and get worse, as we did last year.

If Redknapp is as canny as his reputation suggests, the wholesale, arrogant changes of last Summer will not be repeated and we will just tweak one or two areas in the squad. That's the best way to strengthen Spurs - build the team, not remodel the squad.

The argument that every club has to keep buying more and more new players every year, or they will "lose ground", just doesn't make any logical sense. There is a finite pool of professional footballers out there.

Anyway, if Crouch was so good for Liverpool why did they let him go? If Crouch is so good why is Pompey getting rid of him for only 10 million for a English international striker?

As others have observed, Crouch asked to leave Liverpool and the fans there were not pleased. Portsmouth have to sell him for financial reasons, plus he clearly wants to join up with Redknapp again.

Our team was built to play on the ground and Crouch is built to play in the air...

I think that's false. He's a pretty good header of the ball, but he's at least as good with his feet. Others keep suggesting that we're automatically going to turn into Bolton from 4 years ago as soon as we sign Crouch, which is beyond ridiculous. You haven't said that, but the implication is that we will stop doing what we are good at. I don't think so. I think we'll have the option to do better what we are presently bad at.

 

[TwoSaintsComeMarching]

That doesn't address my point. It's the same squad. It should be able to play football at a similar level. That level, sustained over the course of a season, would have us finish 4th, 5th or 6th.

There is no basis, other than generalised dolefulness at the absence of a "big-name signing", for your contention that a squad that averaged 1.69 points per league match after Redknapp arrived, corresponding to 63-64 points over a season, should suddenly start playing like a 12th place team.

There's an even more extreme argument along the same lines, if I only count league matches after 1 February, which is when our current squad was finalised. After then, we averaged 1.93 points per league game, which corresponds to 73-74 points over a full season. That's top 4 form.



I don't think we need a match-winner. I think we need a striker who can fulfil the roles that are missing from our squad, the principle ones being holding the ball up in an advanced position, playing-in a strike partner and occupying the attentions of one or two defenders so midfielders can join in the attack. Crouch ticks all of those boxes.

I've been saying since last Winter that I have no interest in players who can, by themselves, "take us up to the next level", if that means destabilising the squad again. We need the squad to be left intact to learn to play as a team, except for the gaps, which include a striker who can do what Crouch can do.



Well, you did ask, so here is the post in question again. It has nothing to do with Man City or any specific rival. It's about the principle that "all of our rivals are strengthening", which is provably incorrect:





As others have observed, Crouch asked to leave Liverpool and the fans there were not pleased. Portsmouth have to sell him for financial reasons, plus he clearly wants to join up with Redknapp again.



I think that's false. He's a pretty good header of the ball, but he's at least as good with his feet. Others keep suggesting that we're automatically going to turn into Bolton from 4 years ago as soon as we sign Crouch, which is beyond ridiculous. You haven't said that, but the implication is that we will stop doing what we are good at. I don't think so. I think we'll have the option to do better what we are presently bad at.

:clap:

 

[Michey]

Michey I don't agree with you on Crouch but thats a good point well made just do one thng for me, take Defoe out of the list he shouldn't be in the same list as Greaves.

Well in all honesty i didn't want to see his name there either, i just tried to make some people happy. For some strange reason they think he's our best striker. Dunno where it comes from really. :shrug:
Many posters say that Keane has lost his touch and if that's the case surely the same goes for Defoe. His shoots are mostly blocked these days and he was defintely a better striker 3 - 4 years ago. Enough of this...


Greaves, Chivers, Sheringham, Archibald, Keane, Berbatov, Lineker, Klinsmann, Allen, etc

Gone now :wink:

 

[archiewasking]

Well in all honesty i didn't want to see his name there either, i just tried to make some people happy. For some strange reason they think he's our best striker. Dunno where it comes from really. :shrug:
Many posters say that Keane has lost his touch and if that's the case surely the same goes for Defoe. His shoots are mostly blocked these days and he was defintely a better striker 3 - 4 years ago. Enough of this...


Greaves, Chivers, Sheringham, Archibald, Keane, Berbatov, Lineker, Klinsmann, Allen, etc

Gone now :wink:

Where's Garth??? :evil::evil::evil::wink:

 

[Pinto]

That doesn't address my point. It's the same squad. It should be able to play football at a similar level. That level, sustained over the course of a season, would have us finish 4th, 5th or 6th.

There is no basis, other than generalised dolefulness at the absence of a "big-name signing", for your contention that a squad that averaged 1.69 points per league match after Redknapp arrived, corresponding to 63-64 points over a season, should suddenly start playing like a 12th place team.

There's an even more extreme argument along the same lines, if I only count league matches after 1 February, which is when our current squad was finalised. After then, we averaged 1.93 points per league game, which corresponds to 73-74 points over a full season. That's top 4 form.



I don't think we need a match-winner. I think we need a striker who can fulfil the roles that are missing from our squad, the principle ones being holding the ball up in an advanced position, playing-in a strike partner and occupying the attentions of one or two defenders so midfielders can join in the attack. Crouch ticks all of those boxes.

I've been saying since last Winter that I have no interest in players who can, by themselves, "take us up to the next level", if that means destabilising the squad again. We need the squad to be left intact to learn to play as a team, except for the gaps, which include a striker who can do what Crouch can do.



Well, you did ask, so here is the post in question again. It has nothing to do with Man City or any specific rival. It's about the principle that "all of our rivals are strengthening", which is provably incorrect:





As others have observed, Crouch asked to leave Liverpool and the fans there were not pleased. Portsmouth have to sell him for financial reasons, plus he clearly wants to join up with Redknapp again.



I think that's false. He's a pretty good header of the ball, but he's at least as good with his feet. Others keep suggesting that we're automatically going to turn into Bolton from 4 years ago as soon as we sign Crouch, which is beyond ridiculous. You haven't said that, but the implication is that we will stop doing what we are good at. I don't think so. I think we'll have the option to do better what we are presently bad at.

I think the myth that Crouch is good with his feet is false, he looks so goofy that when he does anything remotely decent on the ground with his feet he looks better than he really is. For me he just doesn't fit in with what got us all those points at the end of the year. We have guys like Lennon, Modric, and Keane who get through balls into good positions to fast strikers like Bent and Defoe to split open defenses and I just see Crouch getting in the way of that free flowing football, I hope I am wrong and Lennon can learn to cross to Crouch and Modric can find ways to include him in his passing but I just don't see it.

I will give you that at least we have an option to bring the ball down from the air if our defense gets in trouble and needs an outlet but we didn't have this outlet at the end of the year and as you pointed out would have finished in the top 6 so why the need to change and do something we aren't built to do.(and no I don't think we will turn into Bolton but why even try if no one but Crouch fits the mold?) Now if you say we are going to use Bentley and his high crosses more than I will be all for it but again I am just underwhelmed by Crouch and while he will probably be good for the team and bring players into the game I just can't get overly exicted and just don't see us breaking into the top 6 with him.


As for the 25 goals and 15 assists I was just trying to make a point that he isn't going to be in the top 5 in goals or assists is all. If it makes you feel better how about 15-18 goals and 8-12 assists? Make you guys feel better?

Also on a sidenote can someone look up the stats for Crouch and Defoe together? Are they really that good together or is that just a myth?

 

[KarsenToon]

http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/news/articles/crouchdealagreed270709.html

LATEST NEWS

Crouch deal agreed


We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement with Portsmouth for the transfer of Peter Crouch to the Club, following the player successfully completing a medical examination and agreeing personal terms.
The England international scored 16 goals in all competitions last season during his second spell at Portsmouth having previously enjoyed eight months at Fratton Park from July 2001 where he scored 19 goals in 39 games.
The 28-year-old joined Aston Villa in March 2002, before moving to Southampton for the start of the 2004/05 campaign. His performances at St Mary's attracted the attentions of Liverpool and after just one season at Southampton, where he scored 16 times in 33 games, he moved to Anfield.
The striker, who began his career with the Club as a trainee before signing for QPR in July 2000, made 132 appearances during three seasons on Merseyside and scored 40 times.

 

[kishman]

Done deal.

Stoof stamp, por favor!

 

[werty]

:dance: He's big, he's white, he's fucking dynamite, Peter Crouch, Peter Crouch :dance: