Liverpool FC Forum

[adamnbarrett]

Thommo's views on the situation:

OWEN'S FUTURE IS IN RAFA'S HANDS - THOMPSON
Wednesday 24th August 2005

Stay tuned to Sky Sports News for all the big stories and reaction as they happen 

Phil Thompson says Michael Owen HAS to return to England - and urged Rafa Benitez to make him welcome at Anfield again.

The England striker says he would prefer to come back to Liverpool even though Real Madrid have agreed a fee of in excess of £15million with Newcastle.

Owen is only willing to take a season-long loan at St James Park and although he thinks he would be a hit on Tyneside, he would prefer to see him back in a red shirt.

But Anfield legend Thompson remains unconvinced that Benitez really wants Owen and is hoping that the Spaniard is playing cool in order to knock Real Madrid's asking price down.

"Now he wants to come back it's great," he told Sky Sports News. "It's fantastic and most of the fans want it.

"But Rafa has been playing this with a straight bat. He needs to come out absolutely and say no, if he doesn't fancy him. Everyone's saying he doesn't like him, but I don't know whether he's just being extremely cagey just to get the price down.

"I think he's trying to put the ball in Madrid's court. The way they're playing it, they are trying to get a big price and I think Rafa's saying 'Look we've got plenty of strikers, we don't really need Michael Owen. I really need a central defender and right midfielder but, if you want to let him go and he wants to come to Liverpool, we'll take him off your hands for £8million'.

"I think that's the way he's trying to play it, leaving it until the last minute and then hopefully a decent deal will be struck."

Thompson agreed that Owen's plea for a return and his popularity with chairman David Moores and chief executive Rick Parry has put Benitez under added pressure, but he has told the manager to ignore outside influences.

"The chairman and Rick Parry really like Michael, but what we've got to remember they might have a little bit of input, but this is the manager of Liverpool Football Club and Rafa must shape his team and do what he sees," he said.

"I don't think he can take anybody's word on what he can do. He needs to believe that Michael Owen will be good for Liverpool and that's above everything else, Rafa needs to believe in Michael."

[Ciggy]

Souness will get the sack soon, and Newcastle are not going to win anything any time soon, if he is not a Newcastle player by tomorrow he is coming back to us.

[kopite_1232002]

Souness will get the sack soon, and Newcastle are not going to win anything any time soon, if he is not a Newcastle player by tomorrow he is coming back to us.

that sig is quality, did didi really say that ti gattuso

[Paul C]

I hope that aggogant c**t Souness gets the chop soon, I can't stand that guys!!

[Ciggy]

From the Times.

LIVERPOOL’S prevarication over the purchase of Michael Owen could cost them a couple of million pounds. The Euro- pean champions remain favourites to sign the Real Madrid forward but Newcastle United may have driven the price up yesterday when, in a move that surprised and annoyed Owen’s advisers, they attempted to ambush his return to Anfield by offering £16 million.
The England striker remains hopeful of a move back to Liverpool but he will require more of the patience that has served him so well during his year in Spain. No offer for Owen is expected from Merseyside until after tomorrow’s European Super Cup in Monaco and Rick Parry, the chief executive, may find Real greedy for more than the £11 million or so that Liverpool had hoped to pay to bring the forward home.



What was already a difficult set of negotiations for Tony Stephens, Owen’s agent from the SFX organisation, became even more complicated when Newcastle leapt in with both feet yesterday. Owen and his representatives have emphasised to Real that they will consider only a loan move to St James’ Park and so the revelation that Newcastle had made a club record bid — some sources claimed it was as high as £18 million, £3 million more than they paid for Alan Shearer — was unwelcome for the England player even if it delighted the board at the Bernabéu.

Real were more than happy formally to accept the offer and they will now use it as a lever when Liverpool come to the negotiating table. The fear for Owen must be that Liverpool, having sold him for £8 million last year, will refuse to be drawn into a bidding contest but he will dig his heels in if Real refuse to accept a profitable offer from Anfield.

“I said that my ideal situation was to start the season in the Real Madrid first team and if not I would prefer to return to Liverpool,” he said in a statement yesterday. “The president understood me and said he would try to help me achieve this. If the transfer cannot be finalised in time I have agreed to go to Newcastle United but only on a one-year loan. I need to be playing regularly in World Cup year.”

It would not be the first time that Newcastle had acted as the catalyst for an England striker’s transfer. Their bid for Wayne Rooney last summer forced Manchester United to make their move for the then Everton forward 12 months earlier than they would have liked.

Frustrated by Owen’s insistence that he would consider a move to the North East only if a move to Liverpool fell through — and under pressure from the supporters because of a poor start to the season — Freddy Shepherd, the chairman, tried to force the issue with an offer beyond even Real’s highest expectations but advisers are insistent that he will not be forced into a permanent move to Tyneside, however much that may suit his present employers.

Despite repeated assertions from Rafael Benítez that a centre back and right winger are his priorities, the Liverpool manager knows that Owen would improve his side. He has already sold Milan Baros to Aston Villa to help to make room for Owen, 25, and the Spaniard is also willing to listen to offers for Djibril Cissé, who was bought by Gérard Houllier, his predecessor, for £14 million.

Liverpool plan to leave their move for Owen until the last minute. The Kop would certainly welcome back a player who scored 158 goals in 297 games in his first spell. He grabbed 16 goals in a difficult first season in Spain, and there are not high hopes that Fernando Morientes, Peter Crouch or Cissé can be relied upon as regular scorers.

Meanwhile, Owen fits and frets in Spain. He may sit on the bench when Real begin the league season away to Cadiz on Sunday but he will hope to be pulling on the familiar red of Liverpool after the international break next week

[skipper]

Sky:

Graeme Souness remains a man under pressure after he watched his Newcastle United side put in another disappointing display that ended in a 2-0 defeat on their travels to Bolton.

How he must be praying Michael Owen is delivered gift-wrapped to St James' Park in the next few days after another wretched performance that exposed all the frailties of a squad shy of both numbers and confidence.

Goals from El-Hadji Diouf and Stelios Giannakopoulos, who looks bound for Liverpool, eased Bolton to their first three points of a season that had previously accrued a draw and a defeat.

Newcastle's attacks were so blunt they would have struggled to cut through a loaf of bread let alone a Bolton defence in no mood to concede.

Devoid of ideas in a combative midfield that lacks a creative spark in Emre Belozoglu's absence, Newcastle resorted to long balls to the head of Alan Shearer - a veteran force that cannot help but be dispirited by his current service.

Newcastle had started the game brightly and were it not for an astutely positioned Gary Speed on five minutes, would have taken the lead when Lee Bowyer swivelled from ten yards and beat Jussi Jaaskelainen but not his former team-mate on the Bolton line.

Thereafter, Bolton's high energy play took over and were it not for the infectious enthusiasm provided by Scott Parker's relentless work rate, Souness' woes could have worsened.

Bolton too have not looked at their sharpest in front of goal this term and it would be a full 25 minutes before they created a chance of their own, when Stelios whipped in a devilish ball that Diouf just failed to meet.

Crosses into the heart of Newcastle's backline always looked the likeliest route to goal and when Diouf broke the deadlock in the 34th minute, it was no surprise that the ball was delivered from out wide.

Nicky Hunt's overlap took him to the edge of Newcastle's box and, after exchanging passes with Stelios, his cross from the right exposed a static Newcastle defence to allow Diouf to head in from close range at the far post.

Souness will have urged his charges to show greater exertion at the break but what he received was a carbon copy of the first half; punchless in attack and with a soft centre at the back.

It took Bolton just ten minutes to double their advantage and heap the misery on Souness, with Stelios' likely farewell to The Reebok Stadium being celebrated with a goal.

When Diouf's clever control kept the ball in play down Newcastle's left, the Senegal international had a criminal amount of time to pick out Speed with his cross and from the Welshman's flick, Stelios was on hand to stab home from a yard.

With Bolton in command and playing with a stylish swagger that belies their dour reputation, a previously peripheral Jay-Jay Okocha stepped out from the shadows and could have added a third but his outlandish drive swerved just wide.

Speed then saw his corner cleared off the line by Stephen Carr, and then from the resulting set-piece, Diouf should have added his second but his header was pulled wide.

Rolling back the years in the final ten minutes, Shearer let fly with a 25-yard strike but Jaaskelainen was equal to it and with it went Newcastle's chances of an unlikely comeback.


Souness is hoping and praying for owen to be gift-wrapped to St. James Park?

Not if we steal the package!  

They surely need a player of his caliber but so do we!

[A.B.]

Souness will be sacked by the end of the next month. Newcastle have Man Utd on the weekend so they won't be picking up any points.

[xd3vilx]

Yesterday Newpaper say Wigan is interested in MO...
The chairman is willin to bid MO for $10 million with a clause if they go down to D1...he is allowed to leave for blah blah fee...

[Judge]

Yesterday Newpaper say Wigan is interested in MO...
The chairman is willin to bid MO for $10 million with a clause if they go down to D1...he is allowed to leave for blah blah fee...

i posted that info two days ago

[red37]

Yesterday Newpaper say Wigan is interested in MO...
The chairman is willin to bid MO for $10 million with a clause if they go down to D1...he is allowed to leave for blah blah fee...

i posted that info two days ago

==========================

we know that judge........................but did your post have any quotes?

[Judge]

ermmmmmmmmm...........NO..sh'it......it didnt....oh no...........i'll incur the wrath of Anorak Boy

[red37]

ermmmmmmmmm...........NO..sh'it......it didnt....oh no...........i'll incur the wrath of Anorak Boy

====================================

   

well dont do it again

[red37]

How Owen would fit in if he returned to Anfield Aug 25 2005

Daily Post

 
MICHAEL OWEN has expressed his desire to rejoin Liverpool after a season with Real Madrid.

However, so far Rafael Benitez has made it clear his priority is to sign a centre-back and that he is happy with the five strikers he has.

Here we look at some of the combinations available to Benitez should he opt to bring Kop idol Owen back to Anfield.

FERNANDO MORIENTES AND OWEN

Morientes is strong, good in the air and on the ground and makes an excellent foil for a pacy partner. In a straight fight between Cisse and Owen, the latter should get the nod based on his proven ability to score goals - and lots of them - in the Premiership.

PETER CROUCH AND OWEN

Sven-Goran Eriksson has already tried out this big man, little man partnership. Crouch may look fragile but he can look after himself and has great touch and vision for such a tall player.

Defenders would have nightmares trying to second-guess Liverpool's attacking play - will they cross the high ball into the area for the 6ft 7in target man, or whip it in low towards the six-yard box predator?

The former Southampton forward is also well capable of playing a killer through-ball - just as he did for Owen in the friendly against Colombia back in May.

DJIBRIL CISSE AND OWEN

The combination of two such quick men in attack is a frightening proposition in theory but their shared inclination to play off the last defender and sprint in on goal suggest they are too similar to be a partnership.

What may work is if Cisse is prepared to operate in a Thierry Henry-type role, drifting wide on occasion to mix things up, with Owen a better and more instinctive finisher to lurk around the penalty area.


it still stacks up in my view. he'd fit RIGHT in. if rafa is willing to take a bit of pride back and try it.. he may surprise himself.

strangely, its the crouch/owen thing that excites me more than the other 2.

[REDTILLDEAD]

It's ok for Rafa to keep going on about the fact that we have 5 strikers (what he overlooks is that none of em' can bloody score!) he may have to swallow some of that "stuborn spanish pride" and offer the olive branch to mo, if we have any chance of brimging him home. Now that n'castle have shown their hand, the gloves are off, and we should be in the thick of it!.. If messers moores/parry are serious about wanting mo back then they may have to dig into their own pockets to make up any shortfall this would allow benitez to still bring in the centre back, and right sided midfielder of his choice. I dont want owen to end up playing for "nuke castle" without our board having a real go at getting him back.

[Judge]

How did we win the CL last year?  It certainly wasn't all Gerrard. Stevie is our inspirational captain, but he's not the entire team.

We won it as a team, it wasn't Gerrard who was the only one playing for Liverpool Football Club but sadly tits like Hustler and the media don't see it that way.

A list of players who helped us in the CL apart from Gerrard:[in no particular order]

-Igor Biscan
-Didi Hamann
-Luis Garcia
-Xabi Alonso
-Jamie Carragher
-Sami Hyypia
-Djimi Traore[yes Traore to a certain degree]
-Milan Baros[should had scored more goals but did his part in one way or another]
-Neil Mellor
-Florent Sinama Pongolle
-Vladimir Smicer
-John Arne Riise
-Stephen Finnan
-Jerzy Dudek
-Scott Carson

I know I'm forgetting someone.

ner ner ner ner ner stats maaaaaan

told yer

he combs the internet sites for stuff to paste, stats to post, but at least its interesting

however dont give up your day job as a trainspotter AB