Thommo's views on the situation:
OWEN'S FUTURE IS IN RAFA'S HANDS - THOMPSON
Wednesday 24th August 2005
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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."