Crouch not vying with Heskey

England boss says strike pair are not direct competition

By James Pearson   Last updated: 20th August 2008

Emile Heskey Fabio Capello England training

Heskey: An interesting player

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Fabio Capello insists the inclusion of Emile Heskey in his England squad has not closed the door on Portsmouth's Peter Crouch.

The Italian recently stated he felt Crouch's move from Liverpool to Portsmouth would benefit the striker as he would be playing more regularly this season.

However, his move failed to earn a call-up for Wednesday's friendly against Czech Republic, with another former Liverpool man Heskey getting the nod.

Capello saw Heskey in action last season, but felt his lack of fitness was hindering his ability to perform at his best for Wigan.

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After seeing Heskey perform well alongside Amir Zaki for Wigan at the weekend, Capello wants to see more of the burly striker who already has 45 caps to his name.

"This is the last friendly before the qualifiers and there will not be a lot of experiments but I have the possibility to (get to) know better some players like Emile Heskey," explained Capello.

"It is the first time I've picked him in the squad. I followed Heskey last year and saw two or three games. He wasn't fit for me.

"I saw the last game, he was very good and played very well. I think he is an interesting player, but it has not closed the door for Crouch."