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Tottenham Hotspur And England Striker Peter Crouch: The Best Is Yet To Come
Towering frontman hopes to improve on impressive international record...
06-Mar-2010 10:06:00 PM
By David Middleton
When it comes to international goalscoring Peter Crouch might have an impressive record, but the Tottenham Hotspur target-man is adamant his best is yet to come.
The towering frontman scored twice for England in a midweek international friendly against Egypt to take his goalscoring record for the Three Lions to 20 goals in 37 appearances.
With only 17 starts under his belt on an international stage, his goals per games ratio is one every 102-minutes, a statistic superior to Wayne Rooney, Jermaine Defoe and the legendary Jimmy Greaves.
However, the former Southampton and Aston Villa man says there's more to come.
“I believe my years now will be the best of my career,” he told the Independent.
“Now I feel a lot stronger, fitter. When you are older you have a lot more experience. That is probably why in the early days I wasn't quite ready.
“When I hit 24, that was when I started to really make an impact. Now I feel settled in a fantastic side at Tottenham [Hotspur]. We are going forward in a great team and I feel established as an international.
“I got a lot stronger, probably around 23, 24 and I believe that now will be the best years of my career. I'm now 29, I feel physically good and I think into my 30s I will be fine to go on for a long time.”
Crouch's 10-goal contribution for Spurs this season has seen them remain in the race for fourth place in the Premier League and Champions League football next season.
While Crouch has become an increasingly important figure at White Hart Lane, his brace for England must surely have cemented his place in Fabio Capello's final World Cup squad.
He added: “I am very proud of my record for England. For some reason I feel very, very confident when I play for England.
“I don't know whether it is because I am playing with great players. I believe that they are going to create chances for me and whenever I play I always seem to take them.
“My goal record is good, and as long as I play I always feel that I an going to score in an England shirt.”
The towering frontman scored twice for England in a midweek international friendly against Egypt to take his goalscoring record for the Three Lions to 20 goals in 37 appearances.
With only 17 starts under his belt on an international stage, his goals per games ratio is one every 102-minutes, a statistic superior to Wayne Rooney, Jermaine Defoe and the legendary Jimmy Greaves.
However, the former Southampton and Aston Villa man says there's more to come.
“I believe my years now will be the best of my career,” he told the Independent.
“Now I feel a lot stronger, fitter. When you are older you have a lot more experience. That is probably why in the early days I wasn't quite ready.
“When I hit 24, that was when I started to really make an impact. Now I feel settled in a fantastic side at Tottenham [Hotspur]. We are going forward in a great team and I feel established as an international.
“I got a lot stronger, probably around 23, 24 and I believe that now will be the best years of my career. I'm now 29, I feel physically good and I think into my 30s I will be fine to go on for a long time.”
Crouch's 10-goal contribution for Spurs this season has seen them remain in the race for fourth place in the Premier League and Champions League football next season.
While Crouch has become an increasingly important figure at White Hart Lane, his brace for England must surely have cemented his place in Fabio Capello's final World Cup squad.
He added: “I am very proud of my record for England. For some reason I feel very, very confident when I play for England.
“I don't know whether it is because I am playing with great players. I believe that they are going to create chances for me and whenever I play I always seem to take them.
“My goal record is good, and as long as I play I always feel that I an going to score in an England shirt.”
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