Michael Owen; seeing a career from beginning to end (Video)

For a person of my vintage, the career of Michael Owen earmarks just how old we now are and have to act.

For someone of my age, he was the first player to be built up to be a world superstar that would finally fulfil England’s destiny to bring home a major championship. To illustrate my point, I believe in my old room at my parent’s house, there is a yearly annual style book entitled “Michael Owen; the story so far of English football’s great hope” printed in 1999 or so. Indeed.

He followed in the lines of David Beckham, Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoigne, Glenn Hoddle, Chris Waddle and countless others who were built up beyond their talents (football’s example of the Peter Principle) by the press and the country at large. The stories of Wayne Rooney and Theo Walcott to name but two are further examples of this truism.

However, at a young age, you really do believe that your childhood hero will make England great again and THAT goal against Argentina firmly cemented Owen’s place in the hearts of a million kids my age.

Subsequently, we have seen his career stumble and fall and despite winning pretty much everything there is to win in the English game, one always wonders what might have been. For my generation, he is probably the first career of a big time player we have seen begin, middle and end.

He is unlikely to win anything more in his career but his move to Stoke shows he still has the hunger at least. This is not the time to dissect his career so let us enjoy him doing what he has always done best and probably enjoyed most; scoring goals for his country.

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