Capello’s snub helps United

Feb 9 2008 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

Kevin Keegan was England manager the last time Michael Owen was dropped by his country but this time Newcastle United’s boss could see the benefits of his latest international snub. Chief Sports Writer Luke Edwards reports.

HAVING been unflatteringly referred to as England’s Michael Owen during his time at Newcastle United, the country’s most prolific goalscorer of the last 10 years is in danger of becoming plain old Michael again.

A temporary fall from grace it may prove to be, but it is one which might just suit those on Tyneside who have become tired of being told the club’s record signing is national property.

Owen has, wisely perhaps, kept his feelings to himself since he was unceremoniously dumped by England’s new tough-talking Italian manager Fabio Capello against Switzerland on Wednesday night.

Left out of the starting XI for the first time when fit in almost eight years, Owen’s face said more than a thousand words in a paid-for national newspaper column ever could as he did not even bother to get out of his seat to warm up, as first Peter Crouch and then Aston Villa’s Ashley Young went on as attacking replacements.

Having been one of England’s untouchables for the best part of a decade, Owen has already been pushed to the periphery of the new national set up by rough Italian hands. While Capello insists the striker remains a part of his plans, they appear to be plans of the B and C variety.

“Michael, publicly, will probably say it’s a new manager and these things happen, but I think privately he will be disappointed,” said his Newcastle manager Kevin Keegan yesterday as he faced the usual round of Owen-based questions in his pre-match press conference for the trip to Aston Villa.

“We haven’t talked about it too much because with a new manager trying new things and looking to just change things around, sometimes your biggest name players get sacrificed. It happens.”

Interestingly, despite his star player status, Owen has never really been embraced by Newcastle’s supporters. The thrill of his arrival from Real Madrid for £17m in August 2005 was quickly replaced by the depression of injuries and, gradually, as news of escape clauses in his contract filtered out into the public domain via his financial representatives, doubts about his commitment to the club.

When Owen crumbled in a heap with a serious knee injury against Sweden at the World Cup in Germany in 2006, it was Newcastle who picked up the pieces, but everyone else talked about where he would be going once he was fit again. Newcastle nursed him back to health, but the rest of the country not only wanted him back again to play for England, they seemingly wanted to make sure he found another club as well. Relationships in football, as in life, can be complicated things and it could be that Owen’s will actually improve with his club as a result of his international problems.

While Owen may never have entirely convinced Tyneside he wants to be here, Newcastle supporters will always offer support and protection to one of their own. In turn, with a point to prove, Owen knows that it is his club form which ultimately, at this stage, is all that matters.

“I always believe that in football the cream always rises to the top,” added Keegan. “Michael will be back and the best way for him to take advantage of that is to try to let the manager know he is here and playing well, which he is and he’s scoring goals.

“What makes me think he will get his place back is his record and his energy. He is not 33 or 34. He is 28. This is the time when he will be at his peak.

“I think it’s just the timing of it that has been really unlucky. New manager wants to try new things and see new players. He will know all about Michael Owen, you don’t have to live in this country and speak English to know what Michael Owen is. His record is there, the clips are there. He is a very influential player and he has been for England for a long, long time. I genuinely believe he will come back into the squad and score goals again. The plus for us is he comes back very fresh. There are always plusses and minuses and he gets the chance at Villa to let people know he is still scoring goals.”

For Keegan, there are also parallels with his past when, shortly after signing for Newcastle as a player, he was dropped by new England manager Sir Bobby Robson. Keegan responded by scoring four goals against Rotherham and while that may be beyond Owen at Villa Park today, Keegan believes the striker has similar resilience.

He said: “I scored four goals at Rotherham. I’m not saying Michael will score (against Villa), but that’s the sort of reaction you will get from people like him. All their lives they have proved people wrong. Michael is a very strong character. You look at the way he has managed to handle everything from the age of 18. He has taken it in his stride. If things do bother him, you never really get the feeling it has.

“If he had just come back and played for England and scored a hat-trick, it would just be the same as he was when he came back in (this time).”