First of all, your dog has to be crate trained. This means he needs to be in there for short periods of time, gradually increasing the time little by little so that he gets comfortable being alone in the crate. (ie: 5 min alone, 10 min, 20 min, 30 min, 1 hour, etc) then rewarded extensively for not barking/whining, for not trying to get out, and for relaxing in the crate. If he starts to try to get out after 10 min, go back to only doing 5 min at a time, etc. Be sure he has a chew toy in there to keep him busy. Your goal is to make him LOVE his crate and willingly go there whenever he is relaxing and needs some alone time. If a dog loves his crate, he will not try to get out. This may take several days or weeks.
If you choose to crate train your dog, then by all means have him in the crate during the day, it should not be a problem because he is crate trained and finds his crate to be his "den", his place of comfort. However, PLEASE have someone come in the middle of the day! If you're gone 8 hours, PLEASE have someone come 4 hours in to play with your dog, take him outside and keep him company for a bit. Also please take him out for a walk before AND after, a dog needs to stretch his legs after laying out all day!
Some more tips: Don't leave anything in there that you don't want a dog to be able to chew on, including blankets, until he is trustworthy enough NOT to chew on them. It's best to prevent a habit BEFORE it happens, rather than to try to change a habit after it is formed. If you want your dog to be comfortable in his crate you can get a nice little crate bed as long as there is still enough space in the crate.
If you did not crate train your dog, my solution would be to buy a doggy gate or playpen that you can secure very firmly to the wall. Test it to make sure it will not fall if pushed/jumped on. Make sure it is tall enough so your dog cannot easily jump over it. Attach it to the walls around his crate and leave some chew toys to keep your dog occupied. Put in a dog bed and a water bowl and lots of toys! This way he will not feel trapped inside the box that he was not trained to love yet.
Same rule applies about getting someone to come during the day, though.
Try s heavy duty, high anxiety crate. Impact makes one. The vent holes are smaller so teeth, noses, paws can't get through or hook on and the inside is completely smooth so nothing to latch on too. Expect to pay though. Run $700-1500. But trust me... cheaper than vet bills and home rehab!