Kingfisher Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Michael Owen set to retire at end of season. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/21839361 He made it to a very high level in the game with unusually (for a modern footballer) very limited technical ability. He was also extremely one footed, never used his left foot for anything other than standing on, and he never ever looked quite in control of a football. But his pace and anticipation in the box made him a lethal poacher. Injury robbed him of his pace a few years ago and it's probably long past time to hang up his boots, a month younger than me, which makes me feel old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimzk5 Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 One of the most gifted strikers England has ever produced. he would have smashed the scoring records years ago but for injurys. Right time to retire though. Some of the abuse he gets on twitter is disgraceful Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zatman Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 from Paddy Power Michael Owen has come out of retirement to announce he will be retiring at the end of the season! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFCforever1991 Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Should have never of left the bin dippers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Stoke must be gutted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 2005 is when it started to go downhill for owen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Rev Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Great player in his day, ruined by injuries. Only Liverpool and England ever saw the best of him, but for a period of six or seven years (shall we say 1998-2005?) he was one of the best strikers in Europe. He was getting niggles by the time he signed for Real Madrid but the injury vs Sweden in the 2006 world cup was horrendous. http://youtu.be/NyI_gXOE2bw I cannot begin to imagine how much that hurt. He was never the same player after. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Unforgettable moment, this goal. I was an unabashed England fan for this game, and this goal had me literally jumping up and down. Great thrill. Fantastic player, no matter how you measure his career. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Owen out-Braziling Brazil: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
villa4europe Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 i didnt think he was that bad for madrid, just never seemed to really get a chance because of who they had in their squad scored the best goal ive ever seen for england (maybe for anyone ever to be fair) and a hattrick in the best england game ive ever seen too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 the worse move he made was arguably the one to manchester united. even though he won 2 trophies, he hardly ever played. back in 2009 he should of gone to a club like everton or villa. top 6, but a team where he would actually get in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr_Pangloss Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 He was burnt out from playing so much as a teenager. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 (edited) I agree, Voinjama. It would seem he was more motivated by money than love of the game when he joined them. Edited March 19, 2013 by maqroll Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 He was also extremely one footed, never used his left foot for anything other than standing on. I dunno, scoring a cracking winning goal in the 2001 FA Cup Final with his left peg wasn't bad for just a standing leg! Great player in his day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Rev Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 (edited) Nah, he had semi retired by then anyway which is why he went to United. No pressure on him, he didn't need the money, he could play golf with his England buddies, it was near his family home and he probably found a kindred spirit in Fergie when it came to the gee gees. Throw in a title medal, another goal in a cup final and a Champions League hat trick and he will probably look back on his time at Old Trafford with great fondness. I'd certainly rather do that if I had already achieved every footballing ambition I had ever had rather than spend the next three years getting slagged off by fans who were hoping I would be able to play 90 minutes every week and score 25 goals a season. I agree, Voinjama. It would seem he was more motivated by money than love of the game when he joined them. I would be stunned, repeat stunned if Manchester United were the club who offered Michael Owen the biggest wages when he was a free agent in 2009. Edited March 19, 2013 by The_Rev Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voinjama Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 for someone as ruthless as ferguson, i am surprised he allowed a player on the united books for 3 years to effectively chill out. he was carried but he did put in a few good performances. unfortubately one of them was against us in the 2010 cup final. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Rev Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 Owen would have been on a pay as you play deal with the most basic of retainers at Old Trafford. United could afford to offer him a take it or leave it deal because they could live without him. Owen went there for an easy time, I don't think anybody is going to argue against that but as I said earlier when you have a ballon d'Or, 80 international caps and half a dozen winners medals (everything except the Premier League title and Champions League, one which he won and one which he nearly won with United) then why the **** would you go sign for a mid table side who need you to be firing on all cylinders? Fulfilled ambitions are not the same as a lack of ambition and anybody throwing that argument at Owen really does need to rethink their opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingfisher Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 He was also extremely one footed, never used his left foot for anything other than standing on. I dunno, scoring a cracking winning goal in the 2001 FA Cup Final with his left peg wasn't bad for just a standing leg! Great player in his day I was probably harsh on him in my OP, he could use his left, though I recall he'd make every effort not to if possible! He did switch to his strong foot more than most players deemed 'top' strikers if we want to judge him by those standards. He was all pace, when that went he had little to fall back on except for his deadly finishing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingfisher Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 I think it's highly disingenuous to say Owen went to Man U for an easy time. I think he went because he fancied the challenge and still believed he could get fit and win trophies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFCforever1991 Posted March 19, 2013 Share Posted March 19, 2013 He was burnt out from playing so much as a teenager. England do that a lot..Look at Wilshere and Rodwell, both are going to be injury prone for the rest of their careers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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