A biography for Peter Crouchhasn’t been written yet.
“At first, I was overwhelmed at moving up to international level, but the England lads are top class at making you feel welcome.”
“I was a million miles from being a Premier League player. You see some people, at 18 they are ready. At 21, I wasn't. Physically nowhere near.”
“Kevin Muscat scared me. You know, people would say 'I'm going to break your legs' - when he would say it, you genuinely believed him.”
“I know I can play, but people who haven't seen me and look at me on a football pitch think, 'He's tall, and he's there to head the ball.'”
“When some kids get a sniff of the first team at a big club, you see them change. They can become big-time, especially so if they happen to be captain of the youth team.”
“I'm not the type of player that's going to run in behind or go past three and score.”
“I got booed by my own fans when I came on in my first game for England. You go through things that are ridiculous. But you get to the stage you realise everyone's got an opinion.”
“A little voice keeps telling me an Aston Martin really isn't me, but a louder voice is telling me that, as an England international playing for Liverpool, the old rules no longer apply.”
“I thrive on quick players getting to the byline and sending over crosses. I just have to be quick enough to get on the end of things. In that regard, my job has always been the same, but if we have more wide, quick players, that can only be good for me.”
“I had Fleetwood Mac on, and Saido Berahino asked me if it was from a movie soundtrack.”
“I enjoy being different.”
“In this age of social media, it is easy to punch out a phrase 'thoughts are with the family' when something bad occurs, and at times, it is insincere.”
“If you're good enough, you're old enough: that's what everyone says. When a talented young player emerges, his age doesn't matter; people want to see him in the team. So why, when you become older, is the assumption that you are no longer good enough?”
“Footballers are very superstitious.”
“People tend to assume I was terribly self-conscious about my height. In fact, I've always been perfectly comfortable with the way I am. And if anyone gave me any stick, they soon found I was quite capable of giving it back.”
“I used to pretend I was into speed garage when I hated it.”
“I have really got into watching the unsigned bands. They play mad venues like the Sugarmill in Stoke and all sorts of underground, grimy places.”
“I don't think I was ready for the Premier League until I was 24 at Southampton.”
“Because of how I looked, there was definitely a prejudice against me. People didn't think I could play. I could see why: I weighed about eight stone and was six foot bleeding seven.”
“Even when I was at the top, playing in the Champions League final for Liverpool and playing at the World Cup for England, I've never let it go to my head.”