Peter Crouch: We still believe Stoke can stay in the Premier League

Stoke were one minute away from their first win in three months on Monday night, only for an Andy Carroll equaliser to rob them of two crucial points

Peter Crouch gave Stoke hope of a win with his goal against West Ham (Getty)

Peter Crouch has called on his Stoke City team-mates to win three of their final four games to stay in the Premier League and insists that, despite everything, “the belief is still there”.

Stoke were one minute away from their first win in three months on Monday night, thanks to Crouch’s late goal at West Ham United, only for an Andy Carroll equaliser to rob them of two crucial points. Now they are level with Southampton, five points behind Swansea City, desperately needing a win on Saturday against Burnley at the very least to have any hope of survival.

Paul Lambert, speaking after Monday’s 1-1 draw, said that winning that game would at least “put the cat amongst the pigeons”. Given they then go to Anfield they will more likely have to hope they can beat Crystal Palace at home on 5 May to set up what would effectively be a relegation decider at the Liberty Stadium on the final day. But Swansea have Bournemouth and Southampton to play before then so could effectively be safe anyway.

Whatever way you look at it, the picture is not looking good, which is why Crouch was so downbeat after the game at the London Stadium.

“It feels like a defeat,” he said. “Conceding so late, it’s a crushing blow. But it’s not over. We’ve still got games we can win. But a win would have lifted everyone.

“The belief is still there. Everyone is down, but we came so close to winning. You look at the four games we’ve got left and three of them, if we win them, staying up is still a possibility.”

The problem for Stoke is that, like Southampton, they are at the mercy of Swansea or Crystal Palace jumping up towards the high 30s of points, at which point their task becomes even harder. “It’s out of our hands, which is frustrating,” Crouch said. “I can’t believe we are in this position, but we are. All we can do is win those games. Let’s go and do it and see where it takes us.”

Crouch, now 37 years old, has only started 10 league games this season but has chipped in with five goals and is desperate to make an impact in the final weeks. “It’s hard on the bench,” he said. “I feel like a fan, biting my nails. Hopefully I can have an impact and be part of a great escape.”