Having been on the books at Tottenham Hotspur as a youth player back in 1998, Peter Crouch had to wait 11 years to make his first team debut.
Crouch was brought back to White Hart Lane by Harry Redknapp for £10 million on a five-year contract. His league debut was against former employees Liverpool on the opening day of the season, coming off the bench to help his team secure a promising victory.
It was in the League Cup against Doncaster Rovers that Crouch scored his first ever goal for Spurs, when Redknapp’s side dismantled them 5-1.
The striker made it two goals in as many matches, opening his league account which saw his side beat Birmingham City 2-1 at home.
Only a month later and Crouch had secured his first hat-trick for his new club, when Spurs continued their fine form in the League Cup beating Preston North End 5-1.
But despite his flying start in a Spurs shirt, Crouch didn’t become a regular goalscorer which everyone had hoped for. In a total of 73 appearances for the club, the 6’7” forward only found the net on 12 occasions.
Harry Redknapp had Crouch at Portsmouth the season prior to them both moving to White Hart Lane. In his sole season at Portsmouth, Crouch had formed a formidable relationship with fellow English striker Jermaine Defoe. Crouch scored 11 goals that season and was an instant hit with fans on the south coast.
It wasn’t difficult to see why Redknapp wanted to bring the England international to Spurs, especially having previously represented Liverpool, where he scored 22 goals in 85 appearances. His most memorable performance in a Liverpool shirt was arguably his perfect hat-trick against Arsenal – a left foot, right foot, header combination.
Despite his poor return for Spurs, his most famous goal for the club was in a 1-0 victory over Manchester City at the Etihad, which secured Champions League football for the following season. The win is still perceived as one of Spurs’ best performances in their recent history.
Although Crouch was on a five-year deal at Spurs, his time was cut short after just two years, before making his way to Stoke City, where he went on to make over 200 appearances for the club, scoring just shy of 50 goals.
Crouch’s old employees are in serious trouble this campaign, as they are still trying to pull themselves away from the relegation zone. Championship betting indicates Stoke City are not safe just yet and still need a few more victories to secure Championship football for another season.
Every Spurs fan wanted Peter Crouch to be a success on his return to White Hart Lane. It is clear to see his goalscoring record was nowhere near where he wanted it to be, but he still managed to put in some strong performances during his two-year stint.
Crouch showed on multiple occasions he was able to link up the play and make defenders work for their money on a regular basis, much to the delight of Harry Redknapp.
His goal which secured Champions League football will always make him a cult hero among Spurs fans and after such an illustrious career, it is hard to find anyone who has a bad word to say about Crouch.