The above photo is more than slightly shocking... Michael Owen, the Liverpool product has just signed a two-year-deal with Manchester United. I'm rarely at a loss for words but this is just one of those times. So I'll break it down nice and easy...
Positives:
It is essentially a no risk deal. The contract is full of incentives, so if he is constantly injured and off the field United won't still be throwing massive amounts of money at him. Plus he came to United on a free transfer, so there wasn't any money wasted there. If he does get injured, which is very likely, it won't be catastrophic like it was at Newcastle because of the depth upfront that United has with the youth players and the two starting forwards (Rooney and Berbatov).
He understands that it was Stoke, Hull City or Manchester United. If he is sitting in the bench he knows the situation is still better than it would have been elsewhere. He most likely will be behind Berbatov and Rooney in the pecking order this season, much like Tevez was last season, we just hope we won't whine as much as Carlitos.
Despite recent form Michael Owen can be a very good player. He has a good touch, and an eye for goal. Before he went to Madrid and Newcastle his scoring record for Liverpool was actually very good. There are also a few masterful England performances to look at, most notably his hat trick against Germany and the stunning goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup.
Finally the deal will piss off a fair amount of scousers, he will most likely be treated like United fans treat Ince.
Negatives:
This guy is really all about the money. Today that is most players, but usually we can slightly delude ourselves that they care about the football. When you transfer from Real Madrid to Newcastle for £16 million, after one season you know it is about the cash.
He was a fierce Liverpool player who grew up as a fan through their youth system. He said on many occasions that his dream was to make Liverpool the best club in the world. Sure, almost all players would say that about any team they are playing for, it is just a little irritating that he felt that way about Liverpool. With that being said I'm sure I would forget all about his Liverpool allegiances if he scored against the scousers this season.
Fitness and Injuries. That's all that needs to be said here.
With that in mind I'll let you all make up your minds on this deal as I try to make up mine.
1 comments:
the more i think about this signing, the more i like it. as you pointed out it's virtually a risk-free signing so if he does get hurt for an extended period of time it won't be a colossal waste of money. his strike rate has been good even when he hasn't played a lot. let's not forget the team around him will be much better than at newcastle and that always makes a difference.
plus he's looking to the make the england world cup squad so i think he has plenty of motivation to do well. only time will tell but i'm excited to have him at the club.
cheers.
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