It was a Tuesday evening. I was 14, and was allowed control of the TV all to myself, because England were playing in the World Cup.
It was a second round game against Argentina, and I was sat on the edge of my seat, since the game had already had two early penalties.
A good pass by poster-boy David Beckham is taken in his stride by young Liverpool starlet Michael Owen. He’s got some pace this lad, let’s see what he can do. He’s past one, only the legendary Roberto Ayala to beat…he’s knocked it past him! Paul Scholes is well placed for a shot here, we could take the lead…hang on, Owen’s hit it himself….OH MY GOD! WHAT A GOAL!!!
And in an instant, a star was born. Sure, I was to end the night in tears after England would go on to lose yet another penalty shoot out, but what a night that was.
Michael Owen had started to establish himself in the Liverpool first team at the tender age of 17. He was picked for the World Cup squad by Glenn Hoddle as a natural partner to captain and talisman Alan Shearer. My word what a partnership they formed in that game. Argentina couldn’t handle either the strength and brute force of Shearer, or the blistering pace of the boy Owen.
As a 14-year-old, he was the man to be in the school playground during games of Wembley, after that World Cup.
And now, fifteen years later, Owen is calling time on a career that has gone on to include spells at Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Michael was more than your average footballer, both in ability and inspiration. Level headed, sensible and well spoken, Owen is testament to the now defunct Lilleshall school of football, where players, but more importantly people, were made.
During his career you won’t ever have read a ‘kiss and tell’ or tale of Owen falling out of a nightclub at some ungodly hour. A testament also to his family for providing the grounding that meant that Michael could ally his phenomenal talent with a sense of responsibility toward young footballers who looked up to him.
In many ways Michael Owen was THE role model for young players. A family man who’s outside interests were the fillies of a racecourse rather than a nightclub.
You always felt that Owen knew how important his image was, and took his responsibility as a role model seriously. For many years Ryan Giggs was the poster boy for what a footballer should be. Recent stories have blown that myth wide apart. One senses that Michael Owen’s reputation won’t be similarly savaged.
And yet he still receives criticism from many, largely for the career choices he made.
His record at Real Madrid alongside England team mate Beckham and amongst the height of Madrid’s ‘Galactico’ era that included the likes of Figo, Ronaldo and Zidane; stands up to any of Europe’s elite either before or since.
Newcastle fans will tell you that Owen is some sort of devil figure, after leaving the club following their relegation from England’s top table; however stories of a contract offer that never actually materialised makes it easy for the club to make Owen appear the villain of the piece.
Besides, how anyone can be criticised for not being completely settled or prolific under the barmy leadership of clueless owner Mike Ashley is beyond me.
Evidently Sir Alex Ferguson wasn’t taken in by the press that Owen received at that time either, adding him to his Manchester United squad that would go on to win three trophies during his three years at the club.
Sadly a common theme throughout Michael Owen’s career was the amount of time spent on the treatment table. One can only wonder what Owen could have achieved had he remained injury free. Even with said injuries he still scored 40 goals for England from 89 appearances, just 9 short of Sir Bobby Charlton’s record and fourth highest in the list of England’s top goalscorers.
As someone whose love affair with football started in the mid-nineties, I will always look back on Michael Owen as one of the first real superstars of the Premier League era.
So long, Michael. Thanks for the goals and the memories. Football’s loss is horse racing’s gain.
Mark McBurney's Blog 