Crouch: Expect a very different scoreline!
Peter Crouch has warned his Stoke City teammates not to expect a repeat of the thrashing they handed out to Liverpool in the final game of last season when the sides meet again today.
The former Kop favourite was among the goalscorers as Mark Hughes' side ended the campaign in style with an emphatic 6-1 victory in May, but he knows Brendan Rodgers' charges will arrive at the Britannia Stadium with a score to settle.
"We are looking forward to the new season," Crouch told Liverpoolfc.com.
“As much as you have pre-season and the matches, you can’t beat the start of the season and playing competitive matches again and it’s exciting when the Premier League kicks off.
“When the fixtures come out I always look out for Liverpool because I get a lot of requests for tickets as some of my friends and family support Liverpool.
“It’s always nice to play against Liverpool, and obviously the last game of last season was some performance from us and I’m certainly not expecting the same scoreline again.
“Like Liverpool, we have played all over the place in pre-season, but it’s part and parcel of it these days. We went to Singapore, France, Germany, games all over the place, but we’ve got a big squad now and the boys are ready to go against Liverpool.”
The Britannia Stadium has earned a reputation of being a difficult place for visiting teams to play their football thanks to the passionate support of Potters fans.
Crouch continued: “I’ve been there before with Liverpool and Tottenham and it is a difficult place to go because no-one relishes coming here.
“We’ve added some quality players during the pre-season, Liverpool have added some quality players as well, so I think it will be an interesting game.
“We’ve had a style of play for a number of years at Stoke [that served us well] but we are getting away from that and starting to play more attractive football.”
Speaking to Crouch, it is abundantly clear he still has great affection Liverpool.
Signed by Rafael Benitez from Southampton in 2005, the striker made 134 appearances in a red shirt, firing 42 goals.
Several players could make their Reds debuts at Stoke on Sunday and Crouch says it will be a special experience for those selected to make their competitive bow.
He said: “When you sign for a club the size of Liverpool it is special.
“I remember when I signed and there are so many great memories and great players that have played for them, you just want to get out there and do as well as you can straight away.
“It took me a while to get my first goal but when I did get there it was fantastic!
“It’s a great football club to play for and I’m sure all of the new boys will be looking forward to stepping up, not at Anfield this time for the first game, but still wearing that red shirt.
“It’s hard not to have affection for Liverpool. Anyone that has played for Liverpool will tell you it is a special place to play and I feel very proud to have represented the club.
“We had a good period when I was playing there and we had some great players. It was a good time for the club and I feel very proud of that.”
The big striker might well be turning 35 in January, but he is still feeling in as good a shape as ever and is ready to help Stoke maintain their impressive form in the top flight in recent years.
Asked about his goals for the season ahead, he added: “For me personally it’s just to keep going as long as I can, make sure I’m in the team, scoring goals and doing as well as possible.
“If we can improve on finishing ninth last season that would be a fantastic season for us."