Owen warns boo-boys off goalshy Crouch

Michael Owen urged fans not to undermine Peter Crouch's confidence any further by booing him in an England shirt, insisting the under-fire striker would prove his critics wrong.

Crouch, who has yet to score for either Liverpool or England this season in 16 appearances, was mocked by some England fans during last month's match against Austria.

Sven-Goran Eriksson's decision to bring on the 6ft 7in forward against Poland, replacing Shaun Wright-Phillips, was also booed by sections of the Old Trafford crowd.

However, Owen sprung to the defence of the 24-year-old forward, who was signed by Liverpool for £7million this summer, with boss Rafael Benitez declining to move for the former Real Madrid striker instead.

'I don't think people quite understand what he brings to the team. Not everyone is wrong, like Jamie Carragher, Didi Hamann and Steven Gerrard, who I speak to on a regular basis,' he said.

'I've trained with him several times and played with him a couple of times. He is a very good player. Maybe he's lacking confidence and needs a good performance or a goal. He's a lad that is maybe a bit affected.

'Some people get used to criticism and it's water off a duck's back. But for him, joining the England team and getting booed, I don't think it's going to help him, put it that way.

'There'll be a lot of people who are surprised when he does find the net and starts playing very well, but there are just as many - me included - that won't be surprised in the slightest.'

Crouch does not exactly fit into the mould of the likes of Owen, Ian Rush, John Aldridge and Kevin Keegan, who have been among the great Liverpool strikers of the past couple of decades.

But Owen, who has similarly defended Emile Heskey in the past, insisted ahead of Saturday's friendly against Argentina: 'Peter is a different type and the Premiership has changed over the years.

'I know what the manager wanted when he bought Peter Crouch - I spoke to him myself! He's the type of player who can hurt certain defences - away from home, at home, he brings you a different dimension.'

Indeed, Crouch is seen by Eriksson as back-up for Wayne Rooney, albeit not in terms of his goalscoring prowess, creativity or pace, but at least as far as his ability to hold up the ball is concerned.

The England coach recently insisted: 'I would like to have Crouch in the World Cup squad. I don't say [for certain] that will happen and it depends how he gets on. But he is very special and I should like to have him.

'I know he is not a goalscorer yet but he does give you so many options. I am sure he will score goals and he showed that for Southampton with 16 goals last season. It is all about confidence.'

Owen later insisted England's strength in depth meant their squad was now stronger than his former club, Real Madrid.

While Roy Keane once insisted the Champions League was a higher standard than international football, Owen believes the quality of England players in training is 'unbelievable'.

Owen, who was often a substitute at Real before moving to Newcastle this summer, added: 'Here, every player is a top player.

'At Madrid, we had the big galactico thing with five or six world-beaters.

The rest of the lads were good, hard-working pros but they aren't a patch on the players outside the team here.'

Asked which team would prevail in a theoretical contest between the 1998, 2002 and 2005 England sides to face Argentina, Owen added: 'If everyone played to their maximum, I think this team would win.

'The players are just so good. The standard in training is unbelievable. The players we've got here, if everyone is on song in any particular match, I wouldn't be scared of anyone.

'It's so difficult for everyone to play well on the same day. But that's what you've got to do if you want to win a World Cup.'