Liverpool FC Forum

[anfieldadorer]

great news to me
I think parry has played his role over this

[anfieldadorer]

Written by Jim Boardman   
Sunday, 10 April 2005

Michael Owen spoke to Shoot magazine in an interview this week that has set tongues wagging about him coming back to Liverpool again in the summer. He spoke in the interview about how he's fed up of being on the bench and is missing the home that he'd just had specially renovated in North Wales. He said that if he had to move, he'd be glad to come back to Liverpool.

Rafael Benitez refused to be drawn on the matter on Friday, but has now told Sky Sports that Owen could come back. At least he said that it's an option for him to come back. Rafa said: "Owen is a Liverpool supporter and it is always an option for him, and for us, for him to come back. He has the spirit that you need. He loves Liverpool so it is always an option for him to come back."

Of course the chances of him coming back depend on many things, but certainly the financial side of the move would be important. Liverpool received £8M for him last August, along with Antonio Nunez. Madrid would want that back at the very least - especially if other clubs come in with higher offers. Then there's the question of Owen's wages - he'd probably not be offered as much as he's on at Real Madrid right now, and although Owen's no mercenary, he'd not play for free.

It does seem though that Owen would need to be happy if he were to continue playing for Real. This means Madrid's coach Vanderlei Luxemburgo needs to find a way of playing Owen when Raul has done his level best to alienate Owen for his own needs. Talk that Raul goes to the president of the club if he wants something - and that he always gets it - is not uncommon.

Luxemburgo has found a way of playing Owen, Raul and Ronaldo in the same team. He's dropped Figo for tonight's Real v Barca game.

Real against Barca will always be a competitive match - but tonight's is going to be a little more so. Barca are nine points ahead of Real in La Liga. A win for Real tonight would close the gap to six points, with seven games left to play.

Said Luxemburgo: "We are going to start with Raúl, Ronaldo and Owen." Luxemburgo was annoyed that the news had been leaked. He told Real's official site: "Yesterdays training was behind closed doors but twenty minutes later what happened was already known".

Now that Figo is getting a taste of life as a sub, he doesn't like it. Luxemburgo said: "It´s normal for Figo to be annoyed, as he has a great history, he´s been an international for his country. My decision is not to lose Figo for the sake of it, but we can´t play with 12. It´s normal for him to be irritated, but I prefer that he starts on the bench. It´s one thing to like something, and another what you can do. I´m going to make a team with the players I have."

Owen's recent form for Real, alongside his performances in training, have swung things his way. Real's fans have taken to Owen, and if he finds the net in this game tonight they'll take to him all the more.

Many commentators in Spain have blamed the way that Real's president chooses the players - star players - to buy makes life hard for the coach. Luxemburgo says this doesn't affect his decisions: "I don´t have a problem with the galacticos. My mission is improve the club. Sometimes I make mistakes, but I have to try. People might think I´m mistaken, but that´s normal. My intention is to make the best team for the Club."

Despite saying that Owen's form was a factor, Luxemburgo hinted at something else that helped him decide. He said, "What´s important here is the "us", not the "I". There was a reason for this change, but I can´t explain it here."

Figo has been linked to a move to the Premiership this weekend - Liverpool being a club that was mentioned - and it may well ultimately be that it's he making way for Owen to become a regular starter.

Liverpool are one of the clubs linked with Figo, but again this seems unlikely as Liverpool would not be willing to pay the sort of wages he'd require.

[woof woof !]

I feel a poll coming on .   

[Ciggy]

Ive got the Real-Barca game on now Figos on the bench, I want to see young players coming to the club Figos to old then it would be a year to get used to the prem, no leave him where he is.
Although sitting on that bench he looks like a Liverpool bound player for some reason

[KARMANI]

i would have owen back straight away. look at our goal scorer list. we need a striker to get us 20 goals a season. owen did that season after season. i understand the point that he messed us around at the end, but at the end of the day he wanted to try it in another country and not many players turn down real madrid. hopefully hes learned that the grass isnt always greener and he comes back a bit more mature.

if this season has taught us anything tho, it is that we need to hav good cover. lookin at the top clubs, they have 3 or 4 established srikers who can be thrown on and still intimidate the opposition. injuries are only one mis-timed tackle away as weve seen all season, and the premiership needs strong squad to maintain a title challenge. so our squad cud easily accomodate mori, cisse, owen and sinama (pretty sure boros is on his way, rafa dont seem too keen and he dont seem to be happy here any more). and with rotation we cud keep them happy. (esp if there are injuries, which is inevitable).

back to the point, i wud have him back, after all he didnt COMPLETELY screw us over, he cud of dun a mcmanaman n left for nothin at all. then there wud hav bin no way back

[JC_81]

FACT, OWEN'S GOAL AVERAGE PER SEASON IS OVER 20
Owen's a 20 goals + player you say? Bollox:

03/04 16 goals
02/03 19 goals
01/02 19 goals
00/01 16 goals
99/00 11 goals
98/99 18 goals

His average being 16,5 goals, not hitting above the 20 mark in any season.

lol.

Check ya facts dickstain. Again you're just wrong.

97/ 98 1 goal
98/99 23 goals
99/00 13 goals
00/01 23 goals
01/02 24 goals
02/03 28 goals
03/04 19 goals

If you really only want to talk league goals, compare that to Baros' totals and see where we're at. I'll even say compare it to his totals when he played in the czech league.

You talk ******, everyone here knows it, you know it, your just to much a fool to admit it. You claim to be better than Murphy and that Owen is mediocre, your just a stupid ****** talking know nothing aisian who doesn't even know where Liverpool is.

That is trash. We have played better football this season, than any of the past 3 years with Owen. And next year without Owen we will finally mount a serious challenge for the title with Morientes, Baros and Cisse.

Erm... where are we in the league?

You don't seem to realise that Owen was excellent at scoring goals away from away from home and thats the reason we had a great record away under Houllier, we've missed that greatly this season and this shows every time we go away to a team like Man City. We've been pathetic and toothless and never looked like scoring in a number of games even when your magnificent (better than Owen Baros) played. Owen had a goal threat about him, he was a constant threat for 90 minutes. Baros and Morientes don't have that threat about them at all. As good as Morientes is, he's not goalscorer.

Where was Baros today by the way? Oh yeah, sittin in the ****** stand because he can't control his temper. Brilliant, truely top class.

You are truely unbelievable.

The only true and legitimate way to compare strikers is to count league goals. All teams play the SAME amount of league games against the SAME opponents. That means that the comparison is fair and unbiased. I do not know why I say this, I do not expect you to understand anyway.

Well heck I'll help you understand:
In a full season all teams will play 38 league games.
Bad teams will perhaps only play 40-42 games in total. Good teams going far in european and domestic cups may end up with 60+ games.

Include cups and you may cancel out 3 good goals scored against Everton, Arsenal and Boro with a hat trick against Wrexham.

Your lies and sorry presentation of statistically biased numbers are pathetic.

Last season Owen could not even be trusted to score from the penalty spot.

Banana agree with you totally,  you saved me having to type a lot of stuff!

Stu talks ****** and its not the first time he's used that FACT... cr@p on me.

Stu change the record mate

[tel]

Do you call yourself Stu the red because you've got red hair?

[Starbridge42]

He wont like that one lol

[Big Niall]

It all depends on how many strikers Rafa wants. If he wants one, like at Valentia, then there is no point. If he wants two then Owen would be a good buy (assuming £8m) but probably only if Baros left for a good sum. Otherwise the money should be spent elsewhere - we are ****** in plenty of places.

[Ace Ventura]

I can see a lot of fans are bitter about Owen leaving and the fact it was for only £8 million, but anyone who thinks him coming back wouldn't improve our side is blind or cant see where we have struggled this year. The amount of games we have lost by a single goal this year amazes me, if we had a striker who would hit 15-20 league goals them narrow defeats would be at least draws and possibly wins. I understand opinions not wanting to go back....but Owen is proven he has continued to score goals and ALWAYS will. I was gutted when he left without giving Rafa a chance and i think he's realised now that it was a gamble that hasn't payed off.
He did leave us and it did hurt so we dont need to go sounding him out about a move...but if his agent contacts rafa i'd take him back without a question.

[liamac]

Agreed with every word Ace, i was bitter and angry at the way he left and the zero time he gave Raffa to buy a replacement........ saying that  , if he wants to come back then  we should forget about the past and let the prodical son return  with open arms

[supersub]

Nah! don't want him back....he can stay where he is,playing for money and rubbing shoulders with the "Has-beens"

[A.B.]

Some lot here are not taking in consideration that Real Madrid have f#cked us up in the transfer window so many times it's getting ridicilous.

Knowing from what has happened in the past Real Madrid would sell Owen for over 8 million, if we buy him for more than what we sold him for then we would be making no profit.

I also feel that Real Madrid would want double for Owen plus Gerrard, once again screwing us over.

[Iceman69]

Thing is, if Owen came back it wold be the same all over again for morientes.

at real, Owen came, and morientes thought his place in the line up was gone.

If Owen comes back to Anfield, Moreientes will think Owen is after his spot again!

[66-1112520797]

when the echo ran this story the headline said liverpool cool on owen return, and i think thats the point.
it`s not that rafa doesn`t rate owen it`s just that rafa probably thinks owen bailed out on him. remember those games when owen was on the bench and rafa couldnt play him because his price would fall? remember when rafa went to euro 2004 to plead with gerrard and owen to stay?
rafa obviously near enough begged owen to stay and michael was having none of it, it wasnt as if michael left the day rafa came, their paths crossed at liverpool for a good few weeks and i think owen left rafa in no doubt where his future lay - hence not playing him in the champions league qualifiers.
remember owens people dragging out his new contract extension for months, this wasnt a rush of blood move like michael tried to make us believe, by not signing a new contract sent out the signals to other clubs.
i think rafa rightly or wrongly, doesnt want him back for personal reasons.
when the real madrid rumours about rafa being their next coach started unlike owen he rubbished them straight away.
what price loyalty? owen obviously believed we were not a big club anymore capable of challenging for the major honours in the game. rafa believes in lfc. there lies the difference.
you`ll never walk alone rafa.

Well said agree totally