‘Abbey tells me if I buy her the wrong present'

Peter Crouch talks about his chaotic Christmases at home with the family and why he leaves Abbey in charge of gifts

- RACHEL CORCORAN

As we’ve seen when they’ve appeared giggling up a storm on Celebrity Gogglebox, Peter Crouch and wife Abbey Clancy are game for a laugh.

But even she may be miffed when Peter admits that he’d rather spend Christmas Day on the pitch than in the company of his wife and kids!

“I’ll be honest, I would actually rather play football,” laughs the former England footballer, 40, who hasn’t played a game on Boxing Day since he retired in 2019.

Now Peter gets to indulge on Christmas Day with his family – his wife of 10 years Abbey, 35, and their four children: Sophia, 10, Liberty, six, Johnny, three, and Jack, two.

For the rest of the year, he’s been as busy as ever doing punditry work, hosting Peter Crouch: Save Our Summer last year and his popular podcast, That Peter Crouch Podcast.

He’s also found time to return to one of his first football teams, Dulwich Hamlet FC, to bring it back from the brink, with a documentary following his progress.

Here, Peter tells us what Christmas is like in their household and what his plans are now he’s fulfilled all his ambitions as a footballer...

What was it like having your first Christmas at home in 2019 when you retired?