Tottenham striker Peter Crouch admits it is a shame that Wales winger Gareth Bale is not English.
As the Spurs pair get ready for Saturday's Euro2012 qualifier in Cardiff, Crouch says he sometimes wishes that the 21-year old was eligible to wear the shirt of the Three Lions.
"Gareth is top class and he can really hurt you. He travels with the ball so well, he has got fantastic technical ability. His pace and energy just scares teams to death. It is a shame at times he is not English," Crouch said.
"He is a player we will have to watch out for. He has done it at the top level before and I'm sure he'll have no problems doing it again. But we will be able to cope with him, I'm sure, and have an emphasis on our attacking play.
"We've had some bits of banter about it in the changing room at Tottenham. I've been giving Gareth quite a bit of stick during this past week. It would be horrible if we lost or even drew the game, given the amount of stick I've given out to him because I know what to expect back."
