Matt Oldfield

 

Sunday 24th May, 2009, was a bad day for Michael Owen, a devastating end to a devastating season for the striker. Not only were his club side Newcastle United relegated from the Premier League in depressing fashion, but Owen was again left out of Fabio Capello’s England squad for the matches against Kazakhstan and Andorra. What will be the next chapter in the tragic decline of England’s former great hope? Has Owen reached the end of both his international and domestic careers after a decade at the top, or does the 29 year-old have the drive and energy to recover and return to his spectacular best?

The former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker has not played for his country since March 2008 and a season of injuries and poor fitness has seen Owen fall even further down the England pecking order, behind the likes of Carlton Cole and Jermain Defoe. This season Owen managed just 10 goals in 31 appearances, bringing his Newcastle total to 30 goals in 76 games over four seasons, a disappointing statistic for a player who was bought for £17M with goals in mind. His pace, his key asset, which used to terrorise defences, is all but gone due to a series of operations. Many wonder if Owen can really play as an out-and-out striker anymore, especially at a club such as Newcastle, where he has been frustrated by a total lack of quality service.

For much of his time at St. James’ Park, Newcastle fans have been very supportive of Owen as he has suffered repeated injuries, but this season supporters became increasingly frustrated by his jaded performances during a relegation fight where a goalscorer was desperately needed. Owen has not scored since late January and his incredible £115,000-a-week wages have not helped his diminishing reputation.

If injuries weren’t bad enough for the striker, his commitment has also been questioned in recent times, with former England team-mate Ian Wright suggesting that Owen was too involved in horse racing to fully concentrate on football. This criticism was followed by strong rumours that the Newcastle striker would retire at the end of the season to become a full-time racehorse trainer. Owen strongly denied these claims, but many fear that this could spell the end for the former teen prodigy’s career. If so, Owen’s dramatic downfall would be complete before he even turns 30. So, what went wrong?

Owen’s decline must be put down to a combination of injuries, exhaustion and burn-out, a case of too much too soon. After 11 years of pressure, the striker is now stripped of his main weapon of choice, his pace, and left with hamstrings that barely function. Owen was thrown into competitive football at the deep end; his obviously sensitive body was never allowed to adjust to the pressures of 60 games a season, and now he seems to be paying the price.

The striker made his Liverpool debut in 1997 at the age of 17, and his England debut a year later at the 1998 World Cup, where he was a sensation, scoring a still-talked-about wonder goal against Argentina. In his eight years at Anfield, Owen scored 118 goals in just 216 games, at the phenomenal rate of well over a goal every two games, the oft used benchmark to determine the class of a forward. The striker won a series of trophies at Liverpool and became England’s number one attacking threat, as well as the 2001 European Footballer of the Year. By the age of 26, Owen had achieved more than most other players can dream of in an entire career; too much as it turned out.

Owen’s transfer to Spanish giants Real Madrid in 2004 was perhaps the start of the downward spiral. Instead of setting La Liga alight with his speed and finishing, Owen spent much of his time on the bench behind Raul and Ronaldo. He did manage 18 goals in his first season at the Bernabeu, despite a lack of opportunities, but the fans and media never warmed to him. When Real Madrid bought Robinho and Julio Baptista in the summer of 2005 the game was up for the forward, and he duly signed for Newcastle, despite speculation that he wanted to return to Liverpool, Owen was unwilling to force the move with Real Madrid, Liverpool being reluctant to meet Newcastle’s bid. Many saw the Newcastle move as a stepping stone, Owen wanting first-team football to secure his place at the 2006 World Cup for England. However, a series of foot and knee injuries conspired to keep Owen at Newcastle and severely limited his playing time for both club and country, to the extent where he is now seriously considering early retirement.

It is this season though that Owen’s career has deteriorated rapidly. The former Liverpool man started the 2008/09 campaign well with five goals in Newcastle’s first eight matches, and had a purple patch in December. But for much of the rest of the season, the striker was a spectator, both on the sidelines and on the pitch.

Owen missed the entire months of October and February through injury – and other games throughout the season – but he still started many games where Newcastle failed to score. Between March and May, Owen made eight starting and substitute appearances for Newcastle but failed to net when his club needed goals the most. On the pitch, his decline was perhaps most evident in the crucial end of season match against Middlesbrough. Having expressed his anger at being left out against Liverpool in the previous game, Owen started, failed to find any form or fitness and was replaced by Obafemi Martins, who scored immediately.

At international level the future looks less than bright too. Owen’s poor club form has led to England boss Fabio Capello hinting that the Newcastle man may never play for England again while he is in charge, an amazing statement considering the striker’s record of 40 goals in 89 international matches and the lack of quality alternatives.

Can Michael Owen’s career get any worse? The answer is probably no. It is highly unlikely that he will remain at Newcastle to play in the Championship, and a number of top clubs have expressed their interest (Everton being the most recent) in resurrecting the former Liverpool’s striker’s career. However, whether Owen can actually recapture his form and goalscoring ability is another question entirely. His body shows all the signs of exhaustion beyond repair and perhaps now is the best time to call it a day. However, in a better side, if he can stay fit for a full season, few would still bet against a miraculous recovery.
 

*Original* Kaiserslautern 96/97      *Original* Slavia Prague 05/06

Kaiserslautern 96/97 home shirt                            Slavia Prague 05/06 home shirt

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