Osaze learning dance steps from Crouch

Osaze Odemwingie has revealed that he has been taking dance lessons from teammate Peter Crouch ahead of singing a Michael Jackson song for his Stoke City initiation.

The 32-year-old arrived at the Britannia Stadium late in the January transfer window from Cardiff City, before making his bow in the historic 2-1 win over Manchester United – City’s first victory over the reigning champions in the Premier League era.

However, the Nigeria international is yet to become a Stoke player in the eyes of his teammates until completing the initiation, but says that his fellow striker has given him dancing tips in his bid to impersonate the King of Pop.

“Apparently, it is a tradition for new players here to sing a song on your first away trip,” he told The Mirror. “I’m learning from Peter Crouch, so I will go for a Michael Jackson song, with a little dance at the end.

“It’s a great dressing room with a lot of jokes, so I can’t escape. I’m happy to have more time to prepare and know the boys more, so it will not be so embarrassing.”

Odemwingie embarrassed himself in last year’s January transfer window when he drove to QPR on deadline day because he wrongly thought their manager Harry Redknapp wanted to sign him.

Stoke boss Mark Hughes rescued him last week when he swapped him for Kenwyne Jones and the striker is smiling again after his miserable last 12 months.

“I’ve put what happened last year behind me,” he says. “The judgment of me from the football family was right.

“In the summer I still had five teams wanting me, even if I seemed unprofessional. Now I’m playing for one of the biggest clubs in the country.

“People have this idea of me, but they don’t really know me. My friends and family know me and that I’m not that bad.”

He knows it may be some time before that bizarre trip to Loftus Road is forgotten, which is why he had no intention of doing it again.

“Absolutely it was different,” he says. “This time I made sure everything was right. Everyone had spoken, including the managers, but I said I would be the last to confirm.