Crouch nears Pompey switch

Portsmouth are preparing to hold talks with Peter Crouch after Liverpool agreed to sell the England striker to the FA Cup winners.

Crouch was a £7m signing by Liverpool in 2005 when he joined from Southampton, and if he agrees to move to Fratton Park, it will be for a second spell as a Portsmouth player.

He had a successful stint in the Championship with Portsmouth in 2001/02 and secured a big-money move to Aston Villa. A dip in fortunes followed, but then came plenty of highs with Liverpool and England.

However Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez will let Crouch leave Anfield this summer and it will be for Crouch to decide whether a move back to the south coast is the best available option for his career.

The 27-year-old will discuss the move with Portsmouth “in due course”, his prospective new club have said.

“We have reached a verbal agreement with Portsmouth and have given them permission to speak with Peter,” a Liverpool spokesman told the club’s website, www.liverpoolfc.tv.

The fee for Crouch, according to reports, could be an initial £8m with add-ons of up to £3m. That would bring in funds for Benitez to use on strengthening his squad, and the loss of an established international striker may mean a like-for-like replacement is required.

Crouch found his opportunities in Liverpool’s starting line-up limited last season as Benitez changed his formation to get the best out of record signing Fernando Torres and inspirational captain Steven Gerrard.

With England boss Fabio Capello to impress, he would expect to play on a more regular basis under Harry Redknapp at Portsmouth, with national team rival Jermain Defoe his likely strike partner.

Liverpool did sign a striker yesterday, albeit one for the future, as Denmark Under-18 international Nikola Saric arrived on a three-year deal.

The 17-year-old, who was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia, was recently on trial with Dutch side Heerenveen.

Benitez’s long-running pursuit of Aston Villa midfielder Gareth Barry appears locked in a stalemate, with counterpart Martin O’Neill unwilling to lower his £18m valuation.