Peter Crouch Peter Crouch Personal information Full name Peter James Crouch Date of birth January 30 , 1981 Place of birth Macclesfield , England Height 6 ft 7 in ( 2.01 m ) Nickname Crouchy , Two-Metre Peter Position Striker Club information Current club Liverpool Number 15 Professional clubs* Years Club Apps ( goals ) 1998–2000 2000 2000–2001 2001–2002 2002–2004 2003 2004–2005 2005–present Tottenham IFK Hässleholm , loan QPR Portsmouth Aston Villa Norwich City , loan Southampton Liverpool 0 ( 0 ) 8 ( 3 ) 42 ( 10 ) 37 ( 18 ) 37 ( 6 ) 15 ( 4 ) 27 ( 12 ) 38 ( 9 ) National team** 2005–present England 16 ( 11 ) * Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19 October 2006 . ** National team caps and goals correct as of 19 October 2006 . Peter James Crouch ( born January 30 1981 in Macclesfield , Cheshire ) is an English international football player , known affectionately as `` Crouchy '' to many fans . He currently plays for the English club Liverpool as a striker . His height of 2.01 m / 6 ft 7 in makes him the tallest man ever to play for either Liverpool or the England national team , as well as the tallest outfield player currently in the Premiership . Despite early criticism upon joining the Merseyside club , Crouch has now established himself as strong team player and goalscorer . He is also known for his robotic dancing goal celebration , performed after scoring for England in the pre- World Cup friendly matches in the spring of 2006 . In the wake of his robotic dancing , The Guardian newspaper described Crouch as `` fast building a reputation as a cult hero `` . Club career Early life Although born in Macclesfield , Cheshire , Crouch 's family soon moved south to London . When Crouch was four , the family moved again , this time to Singapore , although they stayed there for only a year before returning to London . A keen footballer from an early age , he became a ballboy at the age of ten . After attending Drayton Manor High School in Hanwell , Crouch signed a professional contract with Tottenham Hotspur on July 2 1998 , after having played for their youth side . However , he did not make any appearances for their first team and was loaned out to other clubs , having brief spells at Dulwich Hamlet in the Isthmian League and , in the summer of 2000 , IFK Hässleholm in Sweden . QPR & Portsmouth On July 28 2000 Tottenham sold Crouch to Queens Park Rangers ( QPR ) for £60 , 000 . He made an immediate impression with QPR , scoring ten league goals in the 2000–01 season , but it was not enough to prevent the team 's relegation to Division 2 ( now Football League One ) . Relegation meant that QPR had to sell many of their best players to support their diminished finances , and Portsmouth bought Crouch from them for £1.25 million . Crouch scored 18 league goals in only 37 starts for Portsmouth — benefiting from the crossing of Robert Prosinečki — and that in a side that for much of the season looked destined to be in a relegation battle . Aston Villa In March 2002 , FA Premier League side Aston Villa made a successful £5 million bid for Crouch . He scored on his home debut for Villa , the equalising goal against Newcastle United , and managed to net twice in seven games . However , Crouch failed to hold down a regular place in the Aston Villa side in the following 2002–03 season . Looking for first team football , he was loaned to Norwich City from September to December 2003 . Although he scored only four times in 15 appearances , he was highly impressive and remains to this day popular with Norwich City supporters . So popular , in fact , he had a song made up about him ( he 's tall , he 's lean , he 's a freaky goal machine ) . [ citation needed ] Crouch was sent off for retaliation during Norwich 's 3–1 win at Walsall , but nonetheless his spell at Norwich renewed interest in his abilities from other clubs . At the end of the three-month loan he returned to Aston Villa , and scored a brace against Leicester City , a late winner at Middlesbrough and the opener at Bolton . Norwich City recognised his contribution to the 2003–04 season that saw them win the First Division Championship by awarding him a championship medal . He was presented with the medal on the pitch prior to City 's match against his new club Southampton FC at Carrow Road in November 2004 . When he came on as substitute for Southampton later that afternoon , he received a very good reception from the home crowd . Villa sold Crouch in July 2004 to Southampton for a fee of £2 million . Crouch signed a four-year deal with Southampton . He scored just six goals in 37 Premiership games for Aston Villa . Southampton He made his Southampton debut in a 2–0 defeat at his previous club , Villa , and later scored a controversial winning penalty against another former club , Portsmouth , on January 29 2005 in the fourth round of the FA Cup . Despite scoring 16 goals in 33 appearances during the 2004–05 season , his future was cast into doubt when Southampton were relegated from the English Premiership . On July 19 2005 , Southampton agreed to sell Crouch for £7 million to Liverpool , on a four-year contract . Liverpool Crouch underwent intense media scrutiny due to a goal drought during his first months at Liverpool . For 19 games , spanning four months , he was unable to score . Crouch was praised for other facets of his game , such as his touch on the ball , but his first goal for the club evaded him . The fact that Crouch possessed `` good touch for a big man '' in fact became something of a media cliché during this time . The drought finally ended on 3 December 2005 when he scored against Wigan Athletic . Although this first goal was originally given as an own goal , it was later awarded to Crouch on appeal ; he went on to score a second goal in the same game . Prior to these goals , Crouch had played over 24 hours of football for Liverpool without scoring . In addition to this , he also had to deal with unpleasant taunts from crowds at matches , as he had throughout his footballing career , who often chanted `` freak '' at him due to his unusual height . He went on to score several more goals that season , including the only goal in the fifth round of the FA Cup ( 2005–06 ) against Manchester United , Liverpool 's first victory over them in the FA Cup post- World War II . On 13 May he helped Liverpool to win the 2006 FA Cup final against West Ham , providing a crucial assist for Steven Gerrard to score the second Liverpool goal . Three months later , in the curtain-raiser to the 2006–07 season , he headed the winning goal for Liverpool in the club 's 2–1 victory over Chelsea in the FA Community Shield . In their 2006/07 UEFA Champions League campaign he scored his first goals in European club competition . International career Youth international Crouch was capped for the England Under-20 team at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship , with team-mates including Stuart Taylor , Ashley Cole , Andy Johnson and Matthew Etherington . However , the team finished bottom at the group stage , with three losses and having scored no goals . He was later a part of David Platt 's England Under-21 team , which went to the European Under–21 Championships in Switzerland in May 2002 , where he scored once . Breakthrough into senior team In May 2005 , he was handed his first call-up to the senior England squad by manager Sven-Göran Eriksson for the team 's tour of the United States , making his debut against Colombia . He went on to make two appearances during the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign for England : starting against Austria in a 1–0 victory and coming on as a substitute against Poland in a 2–1 win . In the latter appearance , Crouch 's introduction as a second-half substitute was booed by England 's own supporters , although he went on to be instrumental in Frank Lampard 's winner . On 1 March 2006 he scored his first England goal , the equaliser in a 2–1 friendly win over Uruguay . He did this whilst bizarrely wearing two different squad numbers on his shirt — # 21 on the front ( his designated squad number for the match ) , and the incorrect # 12 on the back . In May 2006 , Crouch was included in the 23 man England squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup , and was expected to be a significant figure in the team due to Wayne Rooney 's foot injury . On the 30th May 2006 he played in a pre- World Cup friendly against Hungary , scoring the third goal in England 's 3–1 win . He followed his goal with an unusual robotic dancing -style goal celebration — see below . On 3 June he again played for England in a pre- World Cup friendly against Jamaica , scoring a hat-trick . Between his second and third goals he took a penalty kick hoping to gain a hat-trick , but he put the ball over the bar . England went on to win 6–0 , Crouch securing his hat-trick in the 89th minute with a fine finish — his fifth goal in three England games . World Cup 2006 After his displays in England 's friendlies , Crouch partnered Michael Owen in attack for England 's opening 2006 FIFA World Cup game against Paraguay on June 10 2006 . England won the game 1-0 and Crouch kept his place in the starting line-up for the following match against Trinidad and Tobago , against whom he scored his first competitive international goal . The goal provoked some controversy as replays showed Crouch to be pulling on Brent Sancho 's long hair , holding the defender down , to gain an advantage . Crouch was rested for England 's third group game against Sweden as Rooney returned from injury to join the starting line-up . However , Michael Owen suffered an injury in the opening minute of the game and Crouch replaced him , playing the remainder of the match . In England 's 1-0 second round victory against Ecuador , Crouch remained an unused substitute as Eriksson switched the team to a new formation with Wayne Rooney as a lone striker . However , after Rooney 's dismissal for a foul in England 's quarter-final against Portugal , Crouch came on as a substitute for Joe Cole . He could not turn the game in England 's favour though , and the team lost 3-1 on penalties after a 0-0 draw . Euro 2008 qualifying Crouch remained a part of the England set-up under Eriksson 's successor as manager , Steve McClaren , and started McClaren 's first game in charge , a friendly against Greece in August 2006 . He scored twice in England 's 4-0 victory . Two further goals followed in England 's next match , a 5-0 win over Andorra in their opening qualifying match for the 2008 European Championships on September 2 2006 . These goals made Crouch the first player ever to reach ten goals for England within a single calendar year . This feat , along with his dancing antics and emerging cult hero status , has seen him emerge as an early contender for the 2006 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award . This comes just a year after rival Everton fans launched an ironic internet campaign for him to win the same award , in an attempt to ridicule him for a disappointing start to his Liverpool career . He added a further goal to his tally with the winner in England 's 1–0 qualifying victory away to Macedonia on September 6 . Trivia Nicknames As well as `` Crouchy '' , other nicknames he has been given by fans and the media in England have included `` RoboCrouch '' and `` Crouchinho '' ( a parody of Ronaldinho ) , despite `` Crouchinho '' translating from Portuguese as `` little Crouch '' . His Spanish nickname is `` La Jirafa '' , meaning `` The Giraffe '' . He has been also referred to as `` Mr. Roboto `` by Univision 's commentators and as `` Pantera Rosa '' ( Pink Panther ) by Fox Sports en Español commentators . According to ITV4 show World Cuppa , he is also called `` El Esparagus '' . After his goal in England 's 2-0 World Cup victory against Trinidad and Tobago , German newspapers proclaimed that England had been `` saved by the goalpost '' , a reference to Crouch 's pole-like physique . The unliked `` Freak '' nickname however is one that seems to stick . In an interview for The Sun newspaper , he claimed it all started at Gillingham Football Club when playing for QPR. He said that was the worst he 'd ever had to deal with while on a football pitch. [ citation needed ] `` The Crouch '' dance Robotic dancing In the summer of 2006 , Crouch briefly became particularly celebrated in the English media for his unusual robotic dancing goal celebration . A parody of a dance he had been seen performing on a television programme covering a party held at England team-mate David Beckham 's house , he first performed it after his goal for England against Hungary on May 30 . Two days after the match , Crouch repeated the dance at the request of Prince William during an England training session attended by the Prince . He again performed the dance , at the prompting of his team-mates , after both of his first two goals against Jamaica on June 3 . The dance was briefly a celebrated pop culture event , garnering much media coverage . On Monday 12 June , Crouch announced he would only perform his robotic dance again if England were to win the World Cup , saying `` It 's not about robotic dancing . It is about scoring goals and winning matches . It 's an important time for everyone now '' . In September 2006 , he was quoted in The Observer newspaper as saying that : `` It was funny at the time , but I did n't want to carry on doing it until it became unfunny . I 've stopped doing it for the time being , but if I ever score a really big goal you never know . `` Statistics Club Performance Club Season Premiership FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals App Goals Liverpool 2006-07 6 2 0 0 1 1 4 4 1 1 13 8 2005-06 32 8 6 3 1 0 8 0 2 2 49 13 Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total Southampton 2004-05 27 12 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 33 16 Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total Norwich City ( Loan ) 2003-04 15 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 4 Club Season Premiership FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total Aston Villa 2003-04 16 4 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 18 4 2002-03 14 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 18 0 2001-02 7 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 2 Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Europe Others Total Portsmouth 2001-02 37 18 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 39 19 Queens Park Rangers 2000-01 42 10 3 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 47 12 Club Season Södra Götaland Swedish Cup -- -- -- Europe Others Total IFK Hässleholm Loan 2000 8 3 ? ? - - 0 0 0 0 8 3 Total 204 62 15 9 8 2 16 4 3 3 246 80 Career honours Winner 2003–04 Football League First Division ( Level 2 ) with Norwich City 2005–06 FA Cup with Liverpool 2006–07 FA Community Shield with Liverpool Runner-up 2005 FIFA Club World Championship with Liverpool External links Official Liverpool profile Statistics at soccerbase.com Peter Crouch Profile & Statistics from Yahoo Sport Peter Crouch Profile from Carling References and notes ^ `` Crouch plays his way into starting line-up `` , The Guardian , 2006-06-03 . Retrieved on 2006-06-04 . ^ Duffy , Michael . `` My Pete 's No Freak `` , Sunday Mirror , 2006-06-04 . Retrieved on 2006-06-04 . ^ a   b Peter Crouch Profile . England Football Online ( 2006-09-03 ) . Retrieved on 2006-09-05 . ^ Walker , Michael . `` Mellberg says Crouch is biggest threat `` , The Guardian , 2006-06-17 . Retrieved on 2006-06-18 . ^ Glendenning , Barry . `` The Crouch-a-saurus `` , The Guardian , 2005-10-10 . Retrieved on 2006-06-04 . ^ Taylor , Daniel . `` Crouch rises above the jibes to feel at home among the elite `` , The Guardian , 2006-05-25 . Retrieved on 2006-06-04 . ^ Stewart , Colin . `` Sancho angry as TV shows Crouch pulled hair to climb `` , The Scotsman , 2006-06-17 . Retrieved on 2006-06-17 . ^ Smyth , Rob ; Paul Doyle ( 2006-09-04 ) . Passive Boozing ; and Wild-Tackling Scouser . Guardian Unlimited . Retrieved on 2006-09-04 . ^ Crouch award bid peters out ( 2005-12-05 ) . ^ William attends England training . BBC News Online ( 2006-06-01 ) . Retrieved on 2006-06-01 . ^ `` 'The Crouch ' sweeps the nation `` , Metro , 2006-06-01 . Retrieved on 2006-06-01 . ^ Lipton , Martin . `` World Cup Willie `` , The Daily Mirror , 2006-06-02 . Retrieved on 2006-06-02 . ^ Crouch halts robotic celebrations . BBC ( 2006-06-12 ) . Retrieved on 2006-06-13 . ^ Wilson , Paul . `` Confident Crouch happy to be plan B `` , The Observer , 2006-09-03 . Retrieved on 2006-09-03 . Preceded by : Scott Hiley Portsmouth F.C. Fans ' Player of the Year 2001-2002 Succeeded by : Linvoy Primus England squad - 2006 World Cup Quarter-finalists 1   Robinson  | 2   Neville  | 3   A. Cole  | 4   Gerrard  | 5   Ferdinand  | 6   Terry  | 7   Beckham  | 8   Lampard  | 9   Rooney  | 10   Owen  | 11   J. Cole  | 12   Campbell  | 13   James  | 14   Bridge  | 15   Carragher  | 16   Hargreaves  | 17   Jenas  | 18   Carrick  | 19   Lennon  | 20   Downing  | 21   Crouch  | 22   Carson  | 23   Walcott  | Coach :   Eriksson Liverpool F.C. - Current Squad 1   Dudek  | 3   Finnan  | 4   Hyypiä  | 5   Agger  | 6   Riise  | 7   Kewell  | 8   Gerrard  | 9   Fowler  | 10   Luis García  | 11   Mark González  | 12   Fábio Aurélio  | 14   Xabi Alonso  | 15   Crouch  | 16   Pennant  | 17   Bellamy  | 18   Kuyt  | 22   Sissoko  | 23   Carragher  | 25   Reina  | 26   Anderson  | 28   Warnock  | 29   Paletta  | 32   Zenden  | 35   Guthrie  | 36   Hammill  | 37   Peltier  | 38   Lindfield  | 39   Darby  | 40   Martin  | 45   Smith  | Manager :   Benítez Categories : Articles with unsourced statements | English footballers | Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players | Queens Park Rangers F.C. players | Portsmouth F.C. players | Aston Villa F.C. players | Norwich City F.C. players | Southampton F.C. players | Liverpool F.C. players | FA Premier League players | Current FA Premier League players | England under-21 international footballers | England international footballers | FIFA World Cup 2006 players | FIFA World Cup goalscorers | People from Macclesfield | 1981 births | Living people | People from Ealing In other languages : Italiano | বাংলা | Български | Česky | Deutsch | Eesti | Español | Français | Bahasa Indonesia | Italiano | Lietuvių | Bahasa Melayu | Nederlands | 日本語 | Norsk ( bokmål ) | Polski | Português | Русский | Simple English | Suomi | Svenska | 中文 http : //football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0 , , 1789854 , 00.html The Guardian Crouch plays his way into starting line-up 2006-06-03 2006-06-04 http : //www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=17173591 & method=full & siteid=62484 & headline=my-pete-s-no-freak-name_page.html Sunday Mirror Michael Duffy My Pete 's No Freak 2006-06-04 2006-06-04 http : //www.englandfootballonline.com/TeamPlyrsBios/PlayersC/BioCrouchP.html Peter Crouch Profile England Football Online 2006-09-03 2006-09-05 http : //football.guardian.co.uk/worldcup2006/story/0 , , 1799614 , 00.html Mellberg says Crouch is biggest threat The Guardian Michael Walker 2006-06-17 2006-06-18 http : //football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0 , , 1588933 , 00.html The Guardian Barry Glendenning The Crouch-a-saurus 2005-10-10 2006-06-04 http : //football.guardian.co.uk/worldcup2006/story/0 , , 1782536 , 00.html The Guardian Daniel Taylor Crouch rises above the jibes to feel at home among the elite 2006-05-25 2006-06-04 http : //sport.scotsman.com/football.cfm ? id=888922006 The Scotsman Sancho angry as TV shows Crouch pulled hair to climb Colin Stewart 2006-06-17 2006-06-17 http : //football.guardian.co.uk/Fiver/0 , , 1864775 , 00.html Passive Boozing ; and Wild-Tackling Scouser Rob Smyth Paul Doyle Guardian Unlimited 2006-09-04 2006-09-04 http : //news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/tv_and_radio/sports_personality_2005/4500276.stm Crouch award bid peters out 2005-12-05 http : //news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/5037854.stm BBC News Online William attends England training 2006-06-01 2006-06-01 http : //www.metro.co.uk/fame/article.html ? in_article_id=14566 & in_page_id=7 Metro 'The Crouch ' sweeps the nation 2006-06-01 2006-06-01 http : //www.mirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=17164877 & method=full & siteid=94762 & headline=one-bets-one-looks-good-on-the-dancefloor -- name_page.html Martin Lipton Paul Byrne World Cup Willie The Daily Mirror 2006-06-02 2006-06-02 http : //news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/world_cup_2006/teams/england/5072314.stm Crouch halts robotic celebrations BBC 2006-06-12 2006-06-13 http : //football.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0 , , 1863698 , 00.html Confident Crouch happy to be plan B Paul Wilson The Observer 2006-09-03 2006-09-03 Peter Crouch Peter James Crouch January 30 , 1981 Macclesfield England 6 ft 7 in ( 2.01 m ) Crouchy , Two-Metre Peter Liverpool 15 Striker 1998–2000 2000 2000–2001 2001–2002 2002–2004 2003 2004–2005 2005–present Tottenham IFK Hässleholm , loan QPR Portsmouth Aston Villa Norwich City , loan Southampton Liverpool 0 ( 0 ) 8 ( 3 ) 42 ( 10 ) 37 ( 18 ) 37 ( 6 ) 15 ( 4 ) 27 ( 12 ) 38 ( 9 ) 2005–present England 16 ( 11 ) 19 October 2006 19 October 2006 Portsmouth F.C. Fans ' Player of the Year Scott Hiley Linvoy Primus 2001-2002 