Stoke news: Peter Crouch is not for sale at any price - Mark Hughes

The 6ft 7in star is 37 in January and past his peak, but Stoke boss Mark Hughes reckons the former England man is priceless and he is prepared to lock his office door and barricade it with furniture just to stop the striker getting in.

Crouch admits he is getting fed up at being some kind of supersub for Hughes, who called him on after 69 minutes on Saturday with Stoke 2-1 down and was paid back within four minutes when Crouch powered home a header.

Chances are that come January, there won’t be a shortage of clubs trying to sniff out a bargain. But Hughes will tell them to get lost while admitting Crouch has made his feelings clear.

“He does it on TV just to make sure I’m aware of it,” said Hughes with a chuckle. “All his mates in the media make sure that they ask the question.

“He gets frustrated. I understand that. Basically I’d say, ‘Tough, you’re staying’. He needs to stay here. He’s unique in terms of what he gives us and obviously he’s still very adept at what he does.

“He’s very effective and I know a lot of clubs would love to have Peter so we’re pleased he’s here. There’s no reason for him to leave. I haven’t seen any diminishing of his powers – that’s credit to him.”

Crouch said: “It would be nice to be starting and scoring goals but obviously that’s the way things are going for me. When I come on I try to make an impact and hopefully get a start.”

Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, who made a couple of superb stops, reckoned Crouch had made the difference.

“Crouch was a problem straight away,” he said. “A draw away from home is usually a big result but we feel slightly disappointed. The goals we conceded were avoidable.”

Leicester could have been out of sight by half-time but missed their chances and were then so open they were caught on the break by Xherdan Shaqiri.

Vicente Iborra put them ahead in the 33rd minute when he hooked the ball home from close range before Jack Butland made an incredible stop to swat away Shinji Okazaki’s header.

Iborra headed a great chance over and play switched straight to the other end where Shaqiri produced a great finish after a delightful ball from Maxim Choupo-Moting had sent him clear.