The Malaysian Insider :: Sports
The Malaysian Insider :: Sports |
| Former England striker Owen to retire at end of season Posted: 19 Mar 2013 06:50 AM PDT LONDON, March 19 — A career that was launched into orbit by a stunning goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup will end meekly 15 years later after Michael Owen announced today he will hang up his boots at the end of the season.
"I now feel it is the right time to bring the curtain down on my career," the injury-prone 33-year-old said on his personal website (http://www.michaelowen.com). "I have been very fortunate in that my career has taken me on a journey that like many young players starting out, I could only have dreamt of." Diminutive Owen had already shown his potential at Liverpool when he thrust himself onto the world stage with a sensational solo goal against Argentina in a 1998 World Cup second round defeat in St Etienne. A natural striker with a devastating burst of pace, Owen went on to make 89 international appearances, scoring 40 goals to sit fourth on the all-time England goalscorers' list. Another famous England performance came in the 5-1 World Cup qualifying win in Germany in 2001 when he scored a hat-trick. "It's sad news for football that Michael Owen will retire. He's been a fantastic football player for all the clubs he played for and for England," Sven Goran Eriksson, his England coach from 2001-2006, told Britain's Sky Sports News TV. "He was very easy to manage. First of all, he's a fantastic man — professional, never any problems on or off the pitch. If you had him in your team you knew that at any time he's a danger, he can score the winning goal. "Beating Germany 5-1, that couldn't or shouldn't happen. It was one of those games you can never forget. I felt very proud to be the manager of Michael Owen." INJURY PROBLEMS In 297 appearances for Liverpool he scored 158 goals, making him one of the most sought-after strikers in the world, voted 2001 European Player of the Year and twice winning the Premier League's Golden Boot award. In 2001 he helped the Reds win the FA Cup, with two late goals in the final to come back to beat Arsenal 2-1, as well as the League Cup and UEFA Cup. Owen joined a star-studded Real Madrid team in 2004 and despite starting mainly as a substitute, he managed to score 16 goals in his only season at the Bernabeu before returning to English football with Newcastle. The latter years of Owen's career have been marked by regular injury problems. After battling to recover from a broken foot to be fit for the 2006 World Cup finals, Owen suffered a serious knee injury in the first minute of a match against Sweden and missed almost a year. "It is a great shame that Michael has decided to call time on his career, but he can look back with great pride and satisfaction of having contributed so much to the game, both at international level and domestically," English FA Chairman David Bernstein said in a statement. "We hope Michael's experience is not lost to football." Owen's free transfer move from Newcastle to Manchester United was a shock for fans of arch-rivals Liverpool but apart from a hat-trick in the Champions League against Wolfsburg, it was clear that he had lost the acceleration that once terrorised defenders. A first Premier League winner's medal was forthcoming though with United in 2010/11 and an injury-time winner in the 4-3 derby victory over Manchester City the season before will be forever remembered by United fans. Since joining Stoke he has made only seven appearances, six of them as substitute, scoring one goal. "Emotional day," Owen said on his Twitter site. "I'm overwhelmed. So many nice messages. Having known it for a while I thought I would be ok. Reduced to tears." — Reuters |
| England call up Taylor as cover for injured Cahill Posted: 19 Mar 2013 06:09 AM PDT  Manchester City's Jack Rodwell (R) challenges Chelsea's Gary Cahill during their English Premier League soccer match at The Etihad Stadium in Manchester, northern England, February 24, 2013. — Reuters picLONDON, March 19 — Chelsea's Gary Cahill joined the expanding ranks of defenders unavailable to England soccer manager Roy Hodgson today when he was ruled out of Friday's World Cup qualifier with San Marino. "Cahill was assessed by England medical staff yesterday and will not be able to take part in the match but will be reassessed later in the week with a view to the qualifier against Montenegro today," the FA said on its website (http://www.thefa.com). Newcastle United's Steven Taylor has been drafted in as cover and could be in line for a surprise debut after a host of pull-outs from Hodgson's original squad. Manchester United's Rio Ferdinand withdrew yesterday having been in line for his first international appearance since 2011. Tottenham Hotspur captain Michael Dawson also withdrew from the squad, meaning Hodgson's options in central defence are looking threadbare with a lack of experience that, while unlikely to be a problem against San Marino, will be a concern against Group H pace-setters Montenegro. Joleon Lescott, who struggles to hold down a starting berth with Manchester City, was Dawson's replacement and, with 24 caps, is the most experienced central defender available to Hodgson. Manchester United's Chris Smalling (four caps) and Tottenham Hotspur's Steven Caulker (one cap) are the other options. — Reuters |
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