No special treatment for Crouch, insist FIFA refs

Former World Cup referee Graham Poll had claimed that FIFA's head of refereeing Jose-Maria Garcia-Aranda singled out the Liverpool striker before the finals last year.

It is understood however that a single clip of Crouch - who could play for England against Russia tomorrow - was just one of numerous incidents involving many different players highlighted to officials.

A FIFA spokesman refused to comment but a source within the world governing body said: "There was no singling out Peter Crouch.

"As is usual before major tournaments, referees are briefed to watch out for certain behaviour, such as shirt-pulling and use of the elbow, and these are illustrated by video clips.

"We never single out particular players for referees to look out for. As it turned out Peter Crouch committed the most publicised foul of the tournament when he pulled a defender's dreadlocks before scoring against Trinidad and Tobago - and got away with it."

Poll, who has retired as a referee, said officials were warned about the way Crouch used his arms.

"At the World Cup last year we were shown videos of England games," said Poll last week.

"The head of refereeing at FIFA said 'Look at this big fella Crouch. He's a real pain and he's getting away with too much. We need to mark him as a player we need to look out for.'

"We watched England's warm up games and had been out there for two or three weeks before, and it was pointed out the way he used his arms. I tried to defend him, being English."