PETER CROUCH has opened up about the time he hit Arsenal legend Cesc Fabregas "with the worst tackle of my life" on his latest podcast.
It came as he discussed the frustration he felt as a player when coming on as a substitute with co-hosts Steve Sidwell and Chris Stark.
He said that some games he would come on "and just be so angry" at the disappointment of not making the starting XI.
The former Liverpool man said that led to him lashing out at Cesc Fabregas when Stoke played Chelsea in 2017.
He said: "You know when you're fuming on the bench and you just release all your pent up frustration.
"I did the worst tackle I've ever done in my life on Cesc Fabregas.
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"I had to call him up and apologise to him. I had to get his number to apologise. It was a bad one."
After Sidwell asked whether the Spaniard accepted his apology, Crouch said: "Yeah he did totally. He was like: 'Thanks for getting in touch. It's fine.'"
Crouch was on the losing team that day as Chelsea went on to beat the Potters 4-0 thanks to an Alvaro Morata hat-trick and a goal from Pedro.
Luckily for Crouch, he escaped a red card for the tackle.
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But he said he wasn't so lucky in a game against Southampton in 2014.
He said: "There was another one. We played Southampton and I got sent off, yeah. On as a substitute and [went for] two reckless tackles."
Stoke would go on to lose the League Cup game 3-2 thanks in part to the red card he received for the challenges.
Crouch made 467 Premier League appearances for the likes of Spurs, Liverpool and Southampton, scoring 106 goals.
He called time on his career after a year at Sean Dyche's Burnley in 2019 at the age of 39.