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Michael Owen (now retired)

Keefaz

by Keefaz
in Football

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One a scale of 1-5, how excited are you for Michael Owen on TV every week?  

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  1. 1. One a scale of 1-5, how excited are you for Michael Owen on TV every week?

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B-more Mag

B-more Mag

Posted
Posted
Why Michael Owen deserved everything that came his way

 

By Scott Wilson

 

 

WHEN people discover I'm a sports writer, there's generally one thing they want to know. 'Who's the nicest person you've dealt with, and who's the person you've had least time for?'

 

Having spent seven-and-a-half years on The Northern Echo, there's plenty of people that fall into the first camp so it's incredibly hard to give an answer.

 

The second part of the query, however, is rather easier to respond to. One person stands out a mile - and to my mind, he got exactly what he deserved on Tuesday night.

 

"I knew I would get booed as that's what a lot of fans do," said Michael Owen, after his substitute appearance at St James' Park was accompanied by a chorus of catcalls. "But if they knew the facts, then they may have a different opinion."

 

Okay Michael, well here are some facts to be going on with.

 

In his four years at Newcastle United, Owen earned just short of £5m. He scored 30 goals and, in his final season, was unable to prevent the Magpies being relegated into the Championship.

 

He was also thoroughly objectionable from first moment to last.

 

The days of journalists and footballers rubbing shoulders as equals are long gone, but in my experience, the vast majority of players at Newcastle, Sunderland and Middlesbrough have done their best to assist the local and regional press.

 

They might not like us - particularly when they've just been given four out of ten on a Monday morning - but they accept that papers like The Northern Echo are a valuable link to the supporters that pay their wages.

 

Not Owen. From the moment he arrived in the North-East, Newcastle's record signing made it quite clear that he had absolutely no interest in speaking to the local media.

 

Interview requests were repeatedly turned down. Post-match questions were assiduously ignored. The entire regional press pack, not just The Northern Echo, were treated with a mixture of arrogance and contempt.

 

When Kevin Keegan made Owen captain, we thought things would get better. Instead, they became worse.

 

As Newcastle careered towards the Championship, their skipper became the invisible man, unable to affect things on the pitch because of injury, unwilling to display the leadership that was required off the park.

 

Gradually, supporters sensed an indifference to the club's plight, a lack of empathy for Newcastle United as an institution and a refusal to even begin to understand what the club means to the city and its surrounding region.

 

I could give dozens of examples of Owen being objectionable, but I think this one sums it up best.

 

Ahead of a derby game with Sunderland, we discovered that Owen had played in the same district youth team as Danny Collins.

 

I headed off to North Wales and interviewed the pair's teachers and some of the coaches who had guided them through their careers in youth football.

 

A few days later, I spoke to Collins, who could not have been more helpful as he reminisced about his youth, dug out a few personal old photographs and conveyed a great respect for the volunteers who had helped him as a youngster.

 

The hope was that Owen would do the same. Three interview requests went in to the player, his agent and Newcastle's media office. All three were turned down.

 

Even when we promised to ignore anything relating to the derby, and offered to only ask questions relating to his time in the same team as Collins, our pleas were rebuffed.

 

A day before the piece was due to run, my colleague, Paul Fraser, spotted Owen in the car park at Newcastle's training ground.

 

He introduced himself to the striker - four years on Tyneside, and he still didn't know who any of the local reporters were - and outlined the piece we had prepared.

 

"We'd just like to ask you about some of the people who worked with you at that time," he said. "Do you remember a guy called Cledwyn Ashford who managed your old Deesside football team? What impact did he have on your career?"

 

Owen looked Paul up and down. "No impact at all". And with that, his car door slammed shut.

 

That's why the booing on Tuesday night was one of my favourite moments of the season so far.

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Guest sicko2ndbest

Guest sicko2ndbest

Posted
Posted

Why Michael Owen deserved everything that came his way

 

By Scott Wilson

 

 

WHEN people discover I'm a sports writer, there's generally one thing they want to know. 'Who's the nicest person you've dealt with, and who's the person you've had least time for?'

 

Having spent seven-and-a-half years on The Northern Echo, there's plenty of people that fall into the first camp so it's incredibly hard to give an answer.

 

The second part of the query, however, is rather easier to respond to. One person stands out a mile - and to my mind, he got exactly what he deserved on Tuesday night.

 

"I knew I would get booed as that's what a lot of fans do," said Michael Owen, after his substitute appearance at St James' Park was accompanied by a chorus of catcalls. "But if they knew the facts, then they may have a different opinion."

 

Okay Michael, well here are some facts to be going on with.

 

In his four years at Newcastle United, Owen earned just short of £5m. He scored 30 goals and, in his final season, was unable to prevent the Magpies being relegated into the Championship.

 

He was also thoroughly objectionable from first moment to last.

 

The days of journalists and footballers rubbing shoulders as equals are long gone, but in my experience, the vast majority of players at Newcastle, Sunderland and Middlesbrough have done their best to assist the local and regional press.

 

They might not like us - particularly when they've just been given four out of ten on a Monday morning - but they accept that papers like The Northern Echo are a valuable link to the supporters that pay their wages.

 

Not Owen. From the moment he arrived in the North-East, Newcastle's record signing made it quite clear that he had absolutely no interest in speaking to the local media.

 

Interview requests were repeatedly turned down. Post-match questions were assiduously ignored. The entire regional press pack, not just The Northern Echo, were treated with a mixture of arrogance and contempt.

 

When Kevin Keegan made Owen captain, we thought things would get better. Instead, they became worse.

 

As Newcastle careered towards the Championship, their skipper became the invisible man, unable to affect things on the pitch because of injury, unwilling to display the leadership that was required off the park.

 

Gradually, supporters sensed an indifference to the club's plight, a lack of empathy for Newcastle United as an institution and a refusal to even begin to understand what the club means to the city and its surrounding region.

 

I could give dozens of examples of Owen being objectionable, but I think this one sums it up best.

 

Ahead of a derby game with Sunderland, we discovered that Owen had played in the same district youth team as Danny Collins.

 

I headed off to North Wales and interviewed the pair's teachers and some of the coaches who had guided them through their careers in youth football.

 

A few days later, I spoke to Collins, who could not have been more helpful as he reminisced about his youth, dug out a few personal old photographs and conveyed a great respect for the volunteers who had helped him as a youngster.

 

The hope was that Owen would do the same. Three interview requests went in to the player, his agent and Newcastle's media office. All three were turned down.

 

Even when we promised to ignore anything relating to the derby, and offered to only ask questions relating to his time in the same team as Collins, our pleas were rebuffed.

 

A day before the piece was due to run, my colleague, Paul Fraser, spotted Owen in the car park at Newcastle's training ground.

 

He introduced himself to the striker - four years on Tyneside, and he still didn't know who any of the local reporters were - and outlined the piece we had prepared.

 

"We'd just like to ask you about some of the people who worked with you at that time," he said. "Do you remember a guy called Cledwyn Ashford who managed your old Deesside football team? What impact did he have on your career?"

 

Owen looked Paul up and down. "No impact at all". And with that, his car door slammed shut.

 

That's why the booing on Tuesday night was one of my favourite moments of the season so far.

 

Funny

 

But it was 20 m over 4 years or 5 m a year

 

Not

 

5 m over 4 years

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henke

henke

Posted
Posted

We paid twenty million over 4 years for a guy who only ever gave a toss about being fit for england, we were second fiddle from day one. And at the end, when we were staring relagation in the face, he was sat on the bench because he didn't feel right.

 

And he's dissapointed at being booed? Fucking retard!

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Anderson

Anderson

Posted
Posted

@rioferdy5 I see you've brought a mate into the ring, Sicknote - can you tell @themichaelowen I don't waste my #goonerpower on reserves.

No surprise you two are such good mates @rioferdy5 @themichaelowen - must get cosy in that treatment room #sicknotetwins

 

:lol:

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9

9

Posted
Posted

@rioferdy5 I see you've brought a mate into the ring, Sicknote - can you tell @themichaelowen I don't waste my #goonerpower on reserves.

No surprise you two are such good mates @rioferdy5 @themichaelowen - must get cosy in that treatment room #sicknotetwins

 

:lol:

 

wow i bet Owen took that badly, hate all 3 of them but thats a quality post.

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Guest guinness_fiend

Guest guinness_fiend

Posted
Posted

What's this spat between Morgan and Ferdinand about then?

 

They are embroiled in a cunt-off.

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LesPaul

LesPaul

Posted
Posted

What a c*** of the highest order Owen is. Now compare him to Nolan as captain - what a contrast.

which is an even bigger contrast when you consider the supposed faults and limits there are to Kevin Nolan's game (have to admit I'm a fan of Nolan though)

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Jack Flash

Jack Flash

Posted
Posted

What a c*** of the highest order Owen is. Now compare him to Nolan as captain - what a contrast.

which is an even bigger contrast when you consider the supposed faults and limits there are to Kevin Nolan's game (have to admit I'm a fan of Nolan though)

 

Even bigger still when you know Nolan and Owen both have the same amount of goals for us.

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Sifu

Sifu

Posted
Posted

"@themichaelowen Larry King would score more than you for Utd. With his eyes shut."

 

Morgan again. I'm starting to like him. :lol:

 

:lol:, Morgan is a c*** but that tweet is brilliant.

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