When you think back to previous World Cup tournaments, what are the fondest memories of the games you watched? For me, it were the ones I watched with friends and strangers.

Watching a World Cup on a giant TV screen with friends or strangers is a surreal experience. Every moment in the game is heightened as you stand around practically praying that the ball finds its way into the back of the net. As you scream in delight, so do tens or hundreds of other strangers. It really feels like you’re in a rock concert and the footballers on the pitch are the stars who are in control of your every emotion — whether they’re highs or lows.

Looking back on previous World Cup games, there have been many memorable games I’ve seen. But the best ones are often seen in the company of strangers. Here are just a few that stick out in my mind:

• July 4, 1994 – United States 0-1 Brazil. Few people expected the United States to get as far as the round of 16 after being placed in a first round group featuring Colombia, Switzerland and Romania. But progress they did to a round of 16 game against Brazil on the fourth of July. I watched the game at a Hooters restaurant in Kissimmee, which was standing room only. The States battled hard and almost won it, but when Brazil scored, it knocked the wind out of the US side and sent the Brazilian fans in the Hooters into raptures. The tragedy of this game for me was the way that Brazilian Leonardo deliberately elbowed American Tab Ramos in one of the most vicious fouls I’ve ever seen in a World Cup.
• October 11, 1997 – Italy 0-0 England. While this wasn’t a World Cup game, England needed to draw the game in Rome to qualify for the 1998 World Cup. It was a tense match against a superb Italian side. I watched the match at The Tudor Inn in Fort Lauderdale, a British pub around the corner from Lockhart Stadium. The match was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had watching a game in a pub. The number of people there must have exceeded the maximum capacity, so we were packed like sardines inside the cave of a pub. I also remember the English fans singing their hearts out inside the pub and the wonderful feeling after the final whistle blew with the knowledge that England had qualified, against all odds. As for the football, watch the highlights of an England team that played a beautiful passing style courtesy of manager Glenn Hoddle. Watch for Paul Ince putting his blood, sweat and tears into the game and Ian Wright’s shot that hit the post.
• June 30, 1998 – Argentina 2-2 England (Argentina win 4-2 on penalties). I was on vacation in Orlando, so the restaurant off International Drive was crammed full with English tourists. While we all expected a good game, I think no one had any idea exactly how incredible it would be. After two penalties in the first ten minutes of the game, it was 1-1. Just six minutes later, Michael Owen scored one of the most best goals of his career when he received the ball from David Beckham and went on a lightning-fast run, dribbling past two Argentina defenders and slotting the ball into the far corner. The English fans in the club went into hysterics!

With the time difference during the 2002 World Cup being so grueling, I ended up watching most of the matches live in the middle of the night when from bed and the early morning one on a portable television on my way to work.

The time difference for the 2006 World Cup was far better, but I ended up being disappointed with most of the places throughout South Florida where I tried to watch the World Cup games on weekends. Each weekend I tried a difference venue. I watched the England against Paraguay match at The King’s Head Pub in Sunrise, but it was too cramped and only had one television set. I also went to a Brazilian restaurant to watch France beat Brazil 1-0. The place was like a morgue afterwards. I even went to a strip club for one game — Trinidad & Tobago against Sweden game. But it was too difficult to concentrate on the game and the women at the same time!

My disappointment of not finding one decent venue in South Florida to watch World Cup games in the summer of 2006 gave me the impetus to find one for the 2010 World Cup. That’s why I’ve partnered with Wowies Sports Grill in Boca Raton, Florida, to show 54 of the 64 games live (the only ones not being shown are the 7:30am ET games). If you live in South Florida, be sure to create your own vivid memories by sharing it with friends and strangers at the restaurant. Or, if you live elsewhere, be sure to head out and watch as many games in person as you can. It’s something that I encourage all soccer fans to do.

What have been your fondest memories of watching World Cup games at a pub or restaurant? Click the comments link below to share your stories.

Every country has its historic matches that will never be forgotten and England’s rich World Cup history provides many celebrated games. Say phrases like “1966 World Cup”, “hand of God”, “David Beckham free kick”, “Gazza”, or “losing to penalties” to an England fan and watch his eyes light up with pleasure or grief thinking about the matches that define the England National Team.

Sometimes these great, historic games are not the matches that you remember (for no other reason than maybe not being alive at the time). You may take these famous matches into historical perspective but you actually remember the games that, for some reason, speak to you in some way or other. It could be as simple as a goal that you find stunning, the debut of a player you particularly like, or your club players carrying the side. It could just be that the game represents to you a particular time in history for the team.

Here are five England matches (and an honorable mention) I find particularly memorable.  While not necessarily a list of the best England matches I’ve seen, these are the ones I will never forget.

• Against Scotland in 1996

What I most remember about this match is Gazza’s flick over the Scottish defense that was followed by the famous celebration in this two goal win.

• Against Argentina in 1998

I fondly remember this match for a very young Michael Owen dribbling past the Argentine defense to score an inspired goal. Not so fondly remembered is the David Beckham red card and loss to penalties.

• Against Germany in 2001

If beating Germany wasn’t enough, this game featured three of my club’s players score five goals against the opposition.

• Against Greece in 2001

The amazing David Beckham spot kick merits this match an inclusion on my list of memorable matches.

• Against Argentina in 2005

I’ll never forget this back-and-forth match that resulted in a win over Argentina. By now, you can probably guess who my favorite England player was in the past.

• Honorable Mention – Against Croatia in 2010.

To relate this back to the approaching World Cup we’re all anticipating, I find this recent match memorable because it displays the goal scoring ability of the current crop of players.

2006 was a disaster for England’s much vaunted strikers in so many ways it was depressing. It was clearly Sven Goran-Eriksson’s nadir as the England supremo as his eccentric choices left England woefully short of options. Michael Owen was so off the pace as to be redundant and his World Cup collapse when he ruptured his cruciate ligament against Sweden. Wayne Rooney’s frustration blew up in the Quarter-Final when he was sent off for stamping on a sensitive are of Ricardo Carvalho and Peter Crouch tried his best but simply couldn’t carry the teams striking options. As for Walcott, he may as well have stayed at home.

Fast forward 4 years and things despite the odd injury scare here and there are much rosier for Fabio Capello. Wayne Rooney is in the form of his life, Jermaine Defoe has made himself a crucial member of the squad, Peter Crouch’s reputation is more positive and certain players are jostling for the remaining squad places. The question is, who will make up the 5 strikers that Capello should choose as his options up front.

There’s no point discussing Rooney and Defoe. They’re on that plane unless something incredibly cruel happens but the 3 other positions are a free for all. Certain players over the last 18 months have made cases to be included but some will face the cruelest cut of all and miss out on a chance of going to South Africa. It’s those strikers I’m focusing on and deciding just who should join the first two names I’ve mentioned.

Yet, I have to say that it is some relief that Michael Owen is injured. Surely I can’t be the only person who was sick of his constant bleating in the media week after week. Capello rightly judged Owen to be damaged goods and whilst no-one can doubt up to 2005 he was one of the Premier strikers in world football, he is no where near the level he was. Capello knows that Owen simply cannot cope with the demands of top level football anymore, which is a shame.

Owen will probably never add to his goal tally for England, which currently stands at 40 and it is a sad way for his career at international level to finish. It looked for years as if he would smash Bobby Charlton’s record, but that achievement looks set to become Wayne Rooney’s mantle. With Owens absence, the stage looks set for someone to come in from the left field but surely the highest scoring English striker in the Premiership, Darren Bent.

With 24 league goals this season for Sunderland and pace to burn, Bent should be a shoe-in but something just seems to rub people up the wrong way with him. In any other country, Bent would probably be in the squad without doubt. He reminds me of Mario Gomez, the German striker, who scores goals for fun in the Bundesliga but has yet to find that form at international level and his goals have all come against lower rated international sides.

Should he be there? Yes, he should and I don’t feel he’s had a fair crack of the whip internationally. He deserves a chance to go to South Africa this summer and you have to wonder just where Sunderland would have finished this season without his goals. Of the target men that Capello seems to use, Emile Heskey, Carlton Cole and Peter Crouch have all had difficult seasons but Crouch has continued to perform for England when he has had the opportunity. That alone should subside any fears that his absence from the Tottenham starting line up may have and I’ll be amazed if he isn’t one of the picks up front.

Cole has been involved in a dreadfully difficult season at West Ham United and he is not alone at Upton Park in seeing his form suffer. Heskey has meanwhile seen his form go up and down as Aston Villa have continued to prove that they are back as a consistent challenge at the upper end of the table. Heskey does so much for his team mates that I’m sick of trying to explain why strikers don’t have to score goals to be good.

It’s not been the easiest season for his team mate Gabriel Agbonlahor either, but Villa are still chasing down 4th place in Premiership. For all his pace, he’s still too wildly inconsistent for me at league level never mind international level. I wouldn’t take him if I had a fit Darren Bent to choose.

Of the other two options, both would usually be laughed out of hand, but this season has seen both of them receive praise that has been short throughout their careers. Firstly, Bobby Zamora has had the season of his life at Fulham and has been touted as a possible option for England but he seems to have been patched up more than the 6 million dollar man over the last few weeks. He apparently needs an operation but Fulham have delayed surgery until the England World Cup squad has been announced. I’m sorry Bobby, but I just think there are better options available.

The other choice, may make you laugh, but I think it’s a disgrace he’s never been picked for England. Bolton Wanderers fans will tell you just how good this lad has been for years, but Kevin Davies is so underrated it’s become something of a joke. Yes, he perhaps doesn’t score as many goals as he should but his work rate, strength and technical ability are consistently overlooked. If Crouch wasn’t fit to play, he’d be my first reserve.

So the five strikers I’d take are, Wayne Rooney, Jermaine Defoe, Peter Crouch, Darren Bent and Emile Heskey. What do you think? Who would your choices be? Please leave me your comments as usual.

So what makes a great goal? I know it seems a easy question but honestly, what makes a goal truly great? Is it the goal that keeps a side up or a lob from the half way line? The goal that drags a side back in to a game when they’re 2-0 or a last minute winner in injury time? Everyone has a different variation on what they judge to be a great goal or what the ingredients are that makes some goals stand out above all others.

Well, I’m going to give you my ten goals of the decade, which you may agree with, but probably won’t. Yet that’s one of the great things about football, we all have different opinions and views of the same incident. Hopefully you can view these goals without blinkers of your favourite team and simply judge them on the goal itself. OK, ready? Then we’ll begin.

Goal Number Ten: Thierry Henry v Spurs November 2002

Another North London derby, another Arsenal win but this for me is one of the best goals that this decade saw in the continuing battle between Arsenal and Tottenham. A wonderful solo run and finish saw Henry begin to show the form that was to torment defenders the length and breadth of Europe for the remainder of the decade. A truly great individual goal.

Goal Number Nine: Dietmar Hamann v Portsmouth March 2004

There looked nothing on when Michael Owen swung the ball back in from the left wing but Didi Hamann was running in to hit this strike beautifully from the edge of the box. One of those wonderful volleys that occur every now and again, I doubt Hamann has ever scored a goal better than this in his life.

Goal Number Eight: Shaun Bartlett v Leicester April 2001

What a strike this was for Charlton Athletic. A wonderful cross field pass from Graeme Stuart that the South African Shaun Bartlett hit first time to fire it past the goalkeeper and into the bottom corner. A fabulous hit, set up by a fantastic pass.

Goal Number Seven: Dennis Bergkamp v Newcastle March 2002

What a wonderful piece of skill this is. From Pires’ crossfield pass, Bergkamp flicks the ball one way and rolls around the defender the other and then slides it past Shay Given. A delightful bit of skill from the Dutch master.

Goal Number Six: Xabi Alonso v Newcastle November 2006

Alonso seemed to be one of those players that could try and score from inside his own half more than most. This strike against Newcastle left Steve Harper scrambling to get back, but to no avail. Perhaps more impressive than the similar goal he scored against Luton Town in the F.A. Cup, it will live long in the memory for its precision from distance.

Goal Number Five: David Bentley v Arsenal October 2008

Probably Bentley’s high point during his difficult spell at Tottenham, this wonderful hit saw him control the ball on his chest and volley the ball in to the Arsenal net from 50 yards out. A sublime strike that shows the quality he has, but he simply hasn’t delivered at White Hart Lane. The only benefit to Spurs would seem to be the consistent quality that Aaron Lennon now shows week in, week out since Bentley joined.

Goal Number Four: Wayne Rooney v Newcastle April 2005

Everyone knows the power of Wayne Rooney but this goal shows it for me like no other. Like something from a video game, Rooney spanked the ball in midair at what seems 100mph. The only thing that surprised me was that it didn’t burst the net. A wonder goal from a player that on his day is unplayable.

Goal Number Three: Glen Johnson v Hull City October 2008

Well, it is always special when a full back scores a screamer, Stuart Pearce built a career on smashing the ball in the back of the net, but this was a fantastic strike from Johnson. It impressed me, because he runs on to the ball, controls it with two defenders closing in and smashes it home with his left foot. An outstanding goal.

Goal Number Two: Paolo Di Canio v Wimbledon April 2000

Now this goal summed up the genius of Di Canio in one swift moment. A flying volley that saw him use his left leg to propel him upward for a smashing volley with the right foot past Neil Sullivan, it was a divine finish from one of the Premiership’s most enigmatic players. A truly great goal.

Goal Number One: Robin van Persie v Charlton September 2007

This for me, is one of the best goals I’ve ever seen. A simply breathtaking goal that showed fantastic technique, athleticism and an eye for goal that Marco Van Basten would have been proud of. Everyone knows the qualities that van Persie offers the Gunners, but niggly injuries have held him back from showing the Arsenal faithful his full potency.

So there you have it, my favourite ten goals from the last decade of Premiership football. Leave me some comments, or memories of your favourite goals over the last ten years.

So, the last two days Michael Owen was all over the British press making bold statements about his fitness, his England chances and the possibility of starting more games for Manchester United. 20 minutes in to the clash against Wolfsburg, Berbatov replaced him and it was a case of back to square one for Owen and I’m left scratching my head as to why he even started tonight’s match.

He didn’t train yesterday because of a groin injury, so as soon as I saw the interview with The Times today, I felt that perhaps Owen was tempting fate. I’m not pleased to say that he had indeed pushed his luck with cosmic karma. He wanted the opportunity to start a game for Manchester United and he got it. He wanted Fabio Capello to watch him play and he was at Old Trafford tonight. He wanted an opportunity to impress him but 15 minutes in, the groin went and with it, the chance to push for a place in the last two competitive match squads before the World Cup next Summer.

The interview with Owen intrigued me, mostly because he’s scored 2 goals as a substitute so for Manchester United this season. In the games he’s started he hasn’t scored, or played particularly well. 7 English strikers have scored more and are playing regularly, whilst Theo Walcott is just returning and Emile Heskey is not a goalscorer. Whilst no-one can argue that between 1998 and 2004, Owen was a class apart as a striker, since that point, he has endured an injury nightmare.

Regardless what his ridiculous brochure stated in the summer, Owen hasn’t played more than 30 games in a season for 5 years. He hasn’t hit more than 20 league goals since the 2002-03 season. Since Euro 2004, he’s scored 7 England goals in competitive games and 7 in friendlies, and regardless of what he was, it is clear that he is not the striker he was before Euro 2004.

Now, I’m a fan of Michael Owen, the footballer. Well I was a fan, but regardless of what Owen says, I am not convinced he will ever get back to the level of performance that he showed up until the European Championships of 2004. It is a case of people wearing rose tinted glasses and I do not understand why people are still falling for the hype in regards to recalling him to the England team. People will always recall the goal against Argentina in St Etienne but that was 11 years ago. 11 years!

This is the England team that put 9 goals past Croatia. This is the England team that has qualified for the World Cup winning 8 consecutive games. This is the England team that have scored 48 goals in the 18 matches under Fabio Capello. Can someone explain to me what the strikers aren’t currently doing that means England need Michael Owen? Having an average of 2.7 goals per game is a phenomenal record at international level, does it require an injury prone striker to add to it.

England do not need Michael Owen, Michael Owen needs England. If Owen was anywhere near the level of 2004, I’d have him in the squad in a heartbeat, but he isn’t. Owen is living on past glories and media buddies. England can win the World Cup without him and as he sits on the sidelines once again, people need to have more faith in Fabio Capello. The clamour for Owen’s inclusion does Capello a disservice and it’s about time we drew a line under Michael Owen’s England career and looked to the future.

Toward the end of his book Inverting the Pyramid, Jonathan Wilson writes about the changing nature of modern football.  A player he brings up to emphasize this is Michael Owen.  To Wilson, Owen is a relic of a previous era.

“He appears a player left behind by the tactical evolution of the game,” Wilson writes.  “Owen could be one of those players who wins teams the occasional game, but prevents them playing good football (which means that he may prove extremely useful to mediocre sides, or even to a good side playing badly, but rarely if at all to a good side playing well).”

Michael Owen is the prototypical “fox in the box” or “goal poacher.”  He does one thing.  He clings to the last defender, darts onto a pass and finishes.  He once did so very proficiently.  Despite injuries, he remains reasonably productive.  But, how valuable is that skill?

For Owen to affect the game, he needs service.  He needs a midfield dedicated to feeding him.  He sharpens one angle of attack, but simultaneously blunts others.  A team can make Owen successful, but can he make the team successful?

Liverpool did win the Champions League the year after Owen left.

The designated finisher once was an essential position, but how many teams play such a specialist anymore?  Look at last year’s Champions League finalists.

Manchester United did not play a designated goal-scorer.  Berbatov is more of a facilitator.  Goals came from Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney often moving in from wide roles.

Samuel Eto’o and Leo Messi scored a number of goals for Barcelona, but both play far more versatile roles, Eto’o will at times play on the wing, and defends.  Messi plays on the right.

Neither Man U nor Barcelona played a goal poacher.

If looking for a designated forward, most Premier League fans would choose Didier Drogba or Fernando Torres.  Both players finish, but they also are big, strong and fast enough to attack from multiple angles and create space.  Their technical ability and vision allows them to facilitate teammates.

The one manager who dared press Owen, point out his weaknesses, and encourage him to expand his game was Kevin Keegan.  Rather than accept the message, Owen stubbornly blamed Keegan for ruining his confidence.

Teams need forwards to do more than score goals.  Judging them solely by the number of goals, hardly says anything.  Unless, we are all crowning Nicholas Anelka the best striker in the Premier League.

It’s not necessarily that Michael Owen has declined, but his skill-set does not fit the modern game.  The question, then, is why Manchester United bothered to sign him?

For every generation of fans and players, there is always one player that stands out for a variety of reasons. For every Sir Stanley Matthews, there will be a George Best, for every Gary Lineker, there will be Paul Gascoigne. Players who captivated their peers but for some reason, lost the passion, fell into bad habits and faced battles off the pitch far worse than anything they ever encountered over the white line.

Yet one name stands out amongst all others in post war English football as 0ne that was stolen away from us. Along with the other 7 members of the Manchester United side that died on 6th February 1958 in the Munich Air Disaster, Duncan Edwards’ name has flowed down throughout the last 51 years.  Edwards is held up as potentially the greatest English player of his time and maybe of all time. The plaudits which have been lauded on the likeable West Midlands born lad have continued since he passed away.

Edwards’ career began as most others in those days, playing local league football for both his school, Birmingham County and Worcestershire. Incredibly, it seems that even at 12 years old, he had sides chasing his signature, with 3 of the biggest of the time vying for his attentions ; Wolverhampton Wanderers, Aston Villa and Manchester United. Spotted by United’s scout Jack O’Brien, Busby was urged to sign “A 12-year-old schoolboy who merits special watching. His name is Duncan Edwards, of Dudley”

In time of course, the lure of Manchester United became too much to resist and he joined them in June 1952, still 4 months short of turning 16. Wolves’ manager of the time , Stan Cullis was livid and accusations of financial incentives were bandied about. Edwards however simply informed them that he had always wanted to play for United and that was all their was to it. Edwards stock was rising and it was with no surprise that he quickly forced his way into the first team squad making his debut in April 1953, aged 16.

Over the next 5 seasons, Edwards would make himself a regular fixture in the exciting and dynamic side that Sir Matt Busby was building at Old Trafford. Two successive league titles saw United begin to push Wolves’ dominance of the First Division and the 1957-58 season saw both sides going for the title once again.  Edwards, whilst primarily becoming renowned for playing as a defensive midfielder was equally adept at playing in most outfield positions. In one game for United, he started in midfield, was pushed up front as a replacement striker and finished the game playing in central defence.

Both Stanley Matthews and Bobby Moore were fans of his tenacity, coolness and the presence he had on the field of play. He played with a calmness that belied his years and in the 5 seasons he played for United, he appeared 177 times as well as turning out 18 times for England. By the beginning of 1958 the football world was at his feet. He’d now become a regular for England and was expected to play a major part in the attempt to win the 1958 World Cup, to be held in Sweden that year.

All that changed on 6th February 1958, when the plane carrying the Manchester United squad back from Belgrade crashed on the Munich-Reim runway. United had just qualified for the semi finals of the European Cup after a 3-3 draw against Red Star Belgrade had seen them win the tie 5-4 on aggregate. The plane skidded and lost control attempting to take off for the third time on a slush covered runway, smashing into the ground. Edwards suffered massive injuries, with multiple leg fractures, broken ribs and severely damaged kidneys. Edwards held on for 15 days but a kidney transplant caused internal bleeding and he passed away through renal failure on February 21st.

23 people died as a result of the crash, 7 United players and 3 members of Manchester United staff, 2 crew members, 9 journalists and 2 additional passengers. Amazingly 21 people survived, but it saw United’s season decimated and obviously the club struggled to maintain the season in the circumstances. At just 21 years old, Edwards’ light had flickered its last.

Edwards was laid to rest 5 days later in a grave next to his sister who had passed away in 1947. The streets of his home town Dudley saw 5,000 people for his funeral and the town is rightly proud of the brief but brilliant legacy this quiet young man left in just 5 years. Over the years the plaudits have continued to be given towards Edwards. His grave is still visited regularly, not just by United fans, but fans of all clubs and people who just want to pay their respects.

“He was the only player that made me feel inferior” Sir Bobby Charlton

“There is no doubt in my mind that Duncan would have become the greatest player ever. Not just in British football, with United and England, but the best in the world. George Best was something special, as was Pele and Maradona, but in my mind Duncan was much better in terms of all-round ability and skill” Tommy Docherty

“Edwards was like a rock in a raging sea” Sir Stanley Matthews

• Played 177 games for Manchester United, scoring 21 goals
• 18 games for England and 5 goals
• Potentially England’s greatest ever player
• Held the youngest England international record until Michael Owen beat his record in 1998.

As a Liverpool supporter I have a soft spot for Michael Owen.

Now, for the sake of full journalistic disclosure, I must admit I came to the party late. I’m an American who, seduced by the 2006 World Cup, went looking for an English club to support. Through the right mixture of Steven Gerrard, Peter Crouch and a childhood Beatles obsession (I see that puzzled look on your face—more on all this in an upcoming article), I fell in love with Liverpool Football Club.

So while I cannot speak for scousers who were once swaddled in LFC nappies, I am completely torn over how to feel about Owen going to Manchester United.

When I first swooned for Liverpool, Michael Owen was already two seasons gone. He was at Newcastle, a side I could never bring myself to despise. I knew they hadn’t been a threat to Liverpool’s title hopes since the first time Kevin Keegan was behind the Magpie steering wheel—later, in 2007, I’d buy the DVD of the 1996 4-3 Liverpool-Newcastle classic to help cope with my first summer of PLW: Premier League Withdrawal. (Scandalously, this syndrome is not yet recognized by the World Psychiatric Association. I’ve written a letter.)

So with Owen at Newcastle and me inhaling every piece of media on Liverpool’s back-history I could find, I developed an affection for the wayward golden boy. I wanted him to do well. Wherever he was. As long as it wasn’t at Liverpool’s expense.

But now he’s off to Manchester United. The enemy. What’s a Red American to do? (During the McCarthy Era, American Liverpool supporters were persecuted for asking such a question. Both of them were blacklisted and forced to wear away kits only.) Anyway…

Michael Owen to Manchester United: it’s Johnny Damon leaving the Sox for the Yankees… It’s Marian Hossa leaving Pittsburgh for the Red Wings… It’s Patti Harrison leaving George for Eric Clapton… It’s Captain Ramius parking his Soviet nuclear sub in Penobscot Bay… It’s my freshman year girlfriend leaving me for the singer in my band… (my fault: I shouldn’t have let the prick write ballads…)

No no no. Those things were immediate. Those things were Ashley Cole.

Unlike the aforementioned coups of the sporting heart, the Owen move to Manchester has been softened from his time in Spain and Tyneside. It’s not a direct slight.

Reasons I don’t need to hate him:

-He already “sold out” to Real Madrid. He left Liverpool to chase Champions League glory with the Spanish giants. So his leaving relegated Newcastle to chase glory with the champs is anticlimactic at this point.

-Liverpool had the last laugh: they won the Champions League the season after he left. Sucker. Although this does ressurect my Hossa Pittsburgh/Red Wings comparison. (If only Liverpool had beaten Real Madrid instead of Milan in 2005…)

-He’s going to tear something by September anyway. The Premier League is too intense for Owen to get over his recurring injuries. He’ll split his time between the injury ward, the physio room and the bench.

-Some say he’d come back to Liverpool if he could. Rafa doesn’t want him. I can’t blame him for grabbing the opportunity at Old Trafford if Anfield’s doors are closed to him.

Honestly, this has to be the last big club who will ever want him. It’s like if I was a 45-year-old (roughly the equivalent to Owen’s age in football years—and, yes, Beckham looks great at 65) and I got the chance to date a gorgeous 21-year-old again. (Note: I’m not a rich footballer.) Even if we had nothing in common and our vast cultural differences imposed crippling, uncomfortable silences on our attempts to relate, I would have to tell myself: this has to be the last chance I’ll get to date a 21-year-old! Where’s the dilemma?

And there’s already a couple of United players I don’t completely hate. Maybe I haven’t been at it long enough, but I don’t hate Giggs (longstanding great player even if his award last year came from the old man sympathy vote) and I don’t hate Vidic (he’s brilliant. C’mon, who wouldn’t adopt Vidic in a heartbeat?)

The only real stinger will be if Owen scores against Liverpool. It will be beyond devastating if one of his goals decides the season or a cup result… Will he walk off the pitch, head down, like Dennis Law in 1974? Or will he thrust his hands in the air and circle the pitch like a madman? I don’t want to think about that one.

No. The likelihood of his windows of fitness lining up with such a pivotal moment seems miniscule. But you never know.

So until he single-handedly knocks Liverpool out of the title race, the FA Cup or the Champions League, I’m choosing not to hate Michael Owen.

I think.

Anyway, I’m not going to applaud his goals anymore. I look forward to ricochets off the bar and his face sinking at the sight of raised offsides flags. Those little moments will bring me joy. I mean, c’mon: It’s Manchester United.

In 2004, he left Liverpool for Real Madrid in search of Champions League glory. Early on, Madrid mostly shackled him to their bench and later ducked out to Juventus in the first knock-out round. The Liverpool players bounced on the big stage in Istanbul: lifting the trophy without him.

The next season, after Liverpool didn’t take him back, he moved to Newcastle, citing the chance to play alongside the great Alan Shearer as a big part of what drew him to Tyneside. He’d spent much of Shearer’s final season (and most of the next year) out injured.

He was once the most exciting young striker for England. 18 years and 59 days old when he hit the scene. Bursting with pace and invention. A World Cup darling. Now, there’s no room for him in Fabio Capello’s system. He watches his countrymen chase down World Cup qualification from afar.

And as if fate hasn’t laughed at him enough, Newcastle have been relegated.

A striker is supposed to peak around Michael Owen’s age, but diminished pace and a continuious stream of injuries make him seem far older and more faded than his 29 years should suggest.

As his contract with the fallen Magpies is up, rumors of a move inevitably float to the surface of the ever-murky transfer window punditry pool. Aston Villa. Everton. Roma. Reasonable names are batted about.

Either Villa, who flirted with Champions League qualification for much of the past season before sliding at the end, or Everton, who finished 5th and made a thrilling dash to the FA Cup final, might be a good fit for Michael’s ambitions. But Roma… we’ll come back to that.

It may be time for Michael Owen to consider that the aggresive, physical English Premier League is doing him few favors as far as warding off knocks, tears and strains goes. Does he want to spend the rest of his career drifting in and out of the active roster? A change in league might be the best move at this stage.

Look at his former teammate and fellow injury coinnoseur, Harry Kewell:

After a brilliant (and mostly fit) spell at Leeds United, Kewell moved to Anfield where he spent more time with the physios than with his teammates. Recurring injuries kept Kewell from living up to the uncharted potential he’d shown when he first came to England. Regaining his old match fitness seemed an impossible task for Kewell at, you guessed it, age 29.

At the end of the 2007/2008 season, Harry moved to Galatasary S.K. in the Turkish Süper Lig, where he now enjoys regular first team football and seems to have regained a consistent state of fitness.

If Roma’s interest is genuine, Serie A could be a good fit for Michael Owen. The league is less intense and physical than the EPL but still maintains high standards of quality. His creativity would be given room to thrive and his old prolificacy might blossom anew.

If he can stay out of the hospital gown for any length of time, Michael will score plenty more goals and perhaps even fight his way into Capello’s system. At 29, there’s no reason to blow the final whistle on his career. (Although, when it does finally sound, he should be given plenty of injury time.)

Perhaps Michael Owen is cursed. Since he walked out of Liverpool, events beyond his control have block him living up to his once boundless potential. One of the world’s most exciting young talents has struggled with form and place. One hopes it is not too late for Michael Owen to bounce back. But he’d have to find the right environment and take plenty of vitamins to pull it off at this point. Good luck, Michael.

This is not the worst team in the Premier League.  It is the least valuable.  This team would incite the masses with talent, with name recognition and with expense.  They would then fail pathetically.  This team could be composed entirely of Newcastle players, but we thought we’d include a few others to keep things interesting.

Emmanuel Adebayor (Arsenal): Doubled his salary this season.  Halved his work rate and effectiveness.

Michael Owen (Newcastle): No longer an elite player, no leadership value, paid like someone with both.

Damien Duff (Newcastle): Expensive, complacent and ineffectual, Duff is a perfect emblem for Newcastle’s season.

Joey Barton (Newcastle): He makes £60,000 per week.  No description needed.

Deco (Chelsea): Barcelona – better when he left.  Chelsea – better when he stopped playing.

David Bentley (Tottenham): Once tipped to start for England, can’t even start for Tottenham.  Spurs won eight out of eleven league games he did not play.

Gareth Bale (Tottenham): Spurs still have not won a Premier League match he has appeared in.

Micah Richards (Manchester City): Has regressed rather than progressed, a testament to Capello’s insight.

Gary Neville (Manchester United): Waste of a squad position.

Andrea Dossena (Liverpool): One reason Rafa Benitez should have to work for his transfer funds.

Craig Gordon (Sunderland): Sunderland allowed 113 goals the past two seasons.  Not all Gordon’s fault, but you would expect more impact, given his transfer fee.