Hansen may refer to:

People with the surname Hansen:

• Hansen (surname)

In places:

• Hansen, Idaho, town in the United States
• Hansen, Wisconsin, town in the United States
• Hansen Township, Ontario, Canada

In music:

• Beck Hansen, American alternative musician

Other:

• Hansen Natural, maker of Hansen's sodas and other drinks
• Hansen (crater), a lunar crater
• Hansen Writing Ball, an early kind of typewriter from Denmark
• Hansen's disease, another name for leprosy
• Helly-Hansen, Norwegian manufacturer of sports, work, and outdoor gear
• Hansen (car), Dutch car
• Robert Hanssen, common misspelling, FBI analyst/spy

See also[link]

• Hanson (disambiguation)

Hansen (horse)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Jane Cheryl Hansen is the 1971 Miss International beauty pageant titleholder.

Hansen became the first, and up to now the only, New Zealand delegate to win the crown. She was among the 50 delegates who competed in the pageant when it was held in Long Beach, California.^[1]

References[link]

This article is an orphan, as few or no other articles link to it. Please introduce links to this page from related articles; suggestions may be available. (February 2009)

Antwuan Willis "Big Kandy" Dixon (born August 19, 1988)^[1] is a professional skateboarder who rides for Baker Skateboards' sister company Deathwish Skateboards. Dixon was alternately featured in their promotional video Baker Has a Deathwish.

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Born in Victorville, California and raised in Carson, Dixon received his first skateboard from his older brother who had stolen it from a kid, while hanging out at a local recreational park. One of his earliest experiences on a skateboard, include an accident in which he rolled off of a car, subsequently busting his eye open. The incident occurred after he found himself challenged by his brother to do something bold, leaving the top part of the younger Dixon's head permanently scarred.^[2]

On March 22, 2008, Antwuan Dixon was arrested by Tampa police on charges stemming from possession of marijuana (less than 20 grams) and cocaine with the intent to sell, as well as the battery of 3 law enforcement officers. Dixon was irrevocably held on $4,000 dollars bond, which was subsequently paid for his immediate release.^[1]

In an interview for Skateboardermag, Dixon spoke on the incident:

Ah, man, some crazy shit happened at Tampa! I was just over there chilling, smoking, and I'm chilling outside paying for that tatoo dude and this girl to get in. Then, all of a sudden, this girl's like, "Antwuan, you wanna go smoke?" So we go and we're about to smoke these blunts, then this truck rolls up and it's undercover cops. They just jumped out. Then, this lady had seen I had a big-ass bag of weed and shit. She'd seen my money and thought I was a drug dealer from out there. They were talking about seizing my money, and I was like, "I don't know what that means," and they're, like, "We're basically gonna take your money when we leave here," and I'm, like, "Hell no!" I'm sitting there being handcuffed and shit, so I got up and grabbed my wallet and then I held it. Then me and the cops started fighting for a little bit I guess. I don't know, I was pretty faded. I don't remember. Next thing you know, I end up in jail in Florida with all these batteries against police officers. Now I got to go to court and stuff all the time...^[2]

Tattoos[link]

Dixon has extensive tattooing including full sleeves, upper torso, face, head and hands. Several elaborate designs incorporate his birth date (est. 8/19/88), and a reference to his brother's incarceration, (Free Killa Dee)'uu9u99u'.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Baker Skateboards soundboard
• Baker Skateboards bio
• Official Deathwish Skateboards website
• Official KR3W press page
• Official MySpace page
• Antwuan Dixon Subpublic Profile

Alan Hansen

Personal information
Full name	Alan David Hansen
Date of birth	(1955-06-13) 13 June 1955 (age 57)
Place of birth	Sauchie, Scotland
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position	Centre back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1973–1977	Partick Thistle	86[1]	(6)
1977–1991	Liverpool	434	(8)
National team
1979–1987	Scotland	26	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Alan David Hansen (born 13 June 1955 in Sauchie, Clackmannanshire, Scotland) is a Scottish former football player and BBC television football pundit. He played as a central defender for Partick Thistle, Liverpool and Scotland. In 1990 he became the first outfield player to win English league titles in three different decades.^[2] As a pundit, Hansen has acquired a reputation for his critical and analytical approach to the game, particularly in regard to defending.

Early life[link]

Hansen's grandfather Frederik Hansen (1912–1999) was Danish and was a distant relative of professional golfer Søren Hansen. Alan attended Lornshill Academy. Hansen received a permanent scar to his forehead from running into a plate-glass panel, aged 15. The glass was in a brand-new youth club which Hansen attended. During his 2 hour hospital stay he had 27 stitches in his head. He sued the education authority and won the case.^[3]

Playing career[link]

Sauchie Juniors[link]

Alan Hansen played his early football (along with his brother John) at the Scottish Junior league (Scottish equivalent of non league in England, one level below senior) club, Sauchie Juniors.^[4]

Partick Thistle[link]

Hansen turned down the opportunity to study at the University of Aberdeen, in order to join his brother John at Partick Thistle. During the summer while his application was being processed, he worked for six weeks in the offices of General Accident insurance — which he hated.^[5] As a trainee, Hansen was watching in the Hampden Park stands as Partick Thistle, which included his brother John, upset firm favourites Celtic in the 1971 Scottish League Cup final, beating their counterparts 4–1. In the summer of 1971, Hansen attended a trial at Liverpool Football Club having been spotted by their scouts, but was deemed to have failed to achieve the required standard.

After breaking into the first team at Thistle, Hansen was watched by top clubs, including Bob Paisley's Liverpool. In 1975–76 season Hansen played 21 times as Thistle won the Scottish First Division championship to gain entry into the Scottish Premier Division. By the end of the following season Hansen had 35 first team appearances, before moving south of the border to Liverpool. One extra bonus of signing for Liverpool meant that the nickname which he hated for years would soon be forgotten. After arriving at Anfield "Stretch" was forgotten and "Jockey" was born.

Liverpool[link]

Hansen cost Liverpool £110,000. He made his debut on 24 September 1977 in a league match at Anfield. Derby County were the visitors and were beaten by a single goal scored by Terry McDermott. Hansen hit his first goal the following month on 19 October during a European Cup 2nd round 1st leg tie at Anfield. He opened the scoring in the 14th minute as Liverpool demolished East German side Dynamo Dresden 5–1.

Hansen was put into the first team sporadically throughout the season — he wasn't in the side which lost the League Cup final after a replay to Nottingham Forest in 1978 but was selected for the side which retained the European Cup with a 1–0 victory over FC Bruges at Wembley, the goal scored by Kenny Dalglish. He managed 18 appearances in the First Division, where Liverpool finished runners-up to Nottingham Forest.

The following year Hansen was in the squad as Liverpool regained the League title and also fully established himself as a first choice central defender when long serving club captain Emlyn Hughes was sold to Wolves. He also made his full debut for Scotland. Jock Stein gave Hansen his Scotland debut on 19 May 1979 in a British Home Championship match at Ninian Park, Cardiff, in which Wales were the hosts and soundly beat the Scots 3–0. Hansen's 2nd cap came the following month on 2 June in a prestigious friendly against reigning World Champions Argentina, The South Americans beat the Scots by 3 goals to 1 at Hampden Park.

Liverpool's domination of club football continued in 1980 with another League title and then in 1981 they ended the season with their first League Cup after defeating West Ham United 2–1 in a replay at Villa Park. Hansen scored the winning goal in the 28th minute. They also regained the European Cup with a 1–0 victory over Real Madrid.

The league title returned to Anfield in 1982, and the team also retained the League Cup with victory over Tottenham Hotspur, although Hansen missed this triumph with injury. Hansen was selected in the Scotland squad for the summer's World Cup in Spain. The team failed to progress beyond the qualifying group due to drawing 2–2 with the USSR. An accidental collision between Hansen and central defensive partner Willie Miller allowed USSR striker Ramoz Shengelia through to score the Soviets' second goal.

In 1983, Liverpool once again took the League title and held on to the League Cup, this time defeating Manchester United in the final. The two trophies would remain at Anfield too in 1984, although Hansen was involved in a controversial incident in the League Cup final at Wembley when he appeared to handle a shot on the goal line. Despite protests from opponents and fierce Merseyside rivals Everton, no penalty was given. Liverpool won the final after a replay.

The club then completed a treble of trophies when they added yet another European Cup to the league title and League Cup. The final against AS Roma ended 1–1 and went to a penalty shoot-out, which Liverpool won.

Liverpool emerged trophy-less from the following season, and were banned from all European competition after the 1985 European Cup Final at Heysel was preceded by rioting which caused the deaths of 39 Juventus fans. Though the result of the game was immaterial, Liverpool lost it 1–0. Hansen would never play a European tie again.

Manager Joe Fagan retired after Heysel, and Hansen's friend, team-mate and fellow Scotsman Dalglish was appointed as player manager. He gave Hansen the captaincy and the season ended in triumph, as in 1986 Liverpool became only the third side in the 20th century to complete a League and FA Cup "double", following Tottenham in 1961 and Arsenal in 1971. Hansen lifted both trophies as captain and earned his first FA Cup winners' medal, thereby completing the domestic set.

Liverpool won nothing in 1987, losing the League Cup final when Arsenal defeated them 2–1, while arch-rivals Everton took the League title. But in 1988, arguably the most skilled Liverpool team of all, with Hansen as skipper, lost just twice as they coasted to the League title — Hansen's seventh — and reached the FA Cup final, where they were beaten 1–0 by Wimbledon in one of the competition's biggest shocks.

Hansen was restricted to six league appearances in 1988–89 due to a knee injury, as Liverpool surrendered the league title to Arsenal when they conceded a last minute goal that gave the North Londoners a 2–0 win.^[6]

In April 1989, after the Hillsborough disaster claimed the lives of 96 Liverpool fans, Hansen was among many Liverpool stars left distraught by the tragedy, attending 12 funerals and visiting the injured in hospital. Liverpool eventually won the FA Cup against Everton in the final at Wembley, though Hansen didn't lift the trophy — this honour was given to team-mate Ronnie Whelan who had deputised in Hansen's absence through injury and retained the role even after the club's first choice captain was fit again. Hansen did not complain. In the 1988–89 season, Liverpool lost the League title and a second "double" thanks to a crucial goal in the final seconds by Arsenal player Michael Thomas at Anfield which gave the Highbury club the title.

Hansen made more appearances the following season but his persistent knee problems continued to affect his fitness although he still captained Liverpool to another League title, which made it eight individually for Hansen, which was a record at the time. The club came close to the "double" yet again, but lost a thrilling FA Cup semi final 4–3 to Crystal Palace.

Hansen was unable to play in any competitive games during the 1990–91 season (when Liverpool finished second in the league and were trophyless for only the third time since Hansen's arrival 14 years earlier) and he retired in March, a month after Kenny Dalglish resigned as manager. At this stage Ronnie Moran was caretaker manager until the appointment of Graeme Souness in the permanent position shortly afterwards.^[7]

Scotland[link]

Hansen won the last of his 26 Scotland caps in 1987. The reason given for his lack of caps by Scotland coaches of the late 1970s and the whole of the 1980s was that a formidable partnership had formed between players Willie Miller and Alex McLeish at Aberdeen (managed at the time by Alex Ferguson). Indeed, Ferguson (in temporary charge after the sudden death of Jock Stein) controversially dropped Hansen from the squad for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, citing Hansen's poor international form and reluctance to play international friendly games in the warm up to the World Cup as the reason.

After retirement[link]

There were strong rumours that Hansen would be approached to take over as manager of Liverpool after his former captain Graeme Souness left in 1994. However, he ruled himself out of the running, stating that despite his great affection for the club, he simply was not interested in coaching or management; a position he has maintained ever since Roy Evans got the job.^{[citation needed]}

Media career[link]

Alan Hansen presenting an award in 2006

After rejecting the idea of management, when he retired from football in 1991 he planned to take three months off. After his wife pointed out that during his rest period, the telephone had not rung once, he started calling the networks.^[5] Sky Television employed Hansen as a pundit and summariser almost as soon as he ceased playing, and soon he had established enough of a reputation as a considered observer and thinker within the game for the BBC to approach him. He began working for BBC Radio 5 Live before moving on to Match of the Day.

For more than a decade, Hansen has been employed as the main pundit for the BBC's football coverage (rights to show matches or highlights permitting) and he is known as a calm, authoritative, and rational analyst of the game who is particularly keen on highlighting the triumphs and "shocking", "poor" or "diabolical" mistakes of defenders and commenting on "mediocre" performances.^[8][9]

Commentating on the Argentina-Romania match in the 1994 World Cup, Hansen said that "the Argentine defender warrants shooting for a mistake like that". The previous day, Colombian defender Andrés Escobar had been shot dead, a killing widely attributed to punishment for an own goal Escobar scored in Colombia's 2–1 loss to the United States earlier in the same tournament. The BBC issued a public apology for Hansen's choice of words.^[10]

Hansen is also known for coining the phrase "you can't win anything with kids," having made the remark following Manchester United's 3–1 defeat to Aston Villa on the opening day of the 1995–96 Premier League season. After selling high profile players like Ince, Hughes and Kanchelskis in the summer of 1995, United had introduced several youth team players including Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Nicky Butt and Gary Neville into the first team, yet proved Hansen wrong by winning a league and cup double that same season. Hansen still continues to this day to repeat these facts, for humorous effect.

Away from football analysis, Hansen is a keen golfer, and he is a member of Hillside Golf Club playing off a handicap of three and regularly returns to the town of his birth near Alloa in Clackmannanshire, Scotland to participate in celebrity golf tournaments in aid of various charities. He has hosted documentaries on the sport and worked at the Masters Tournament for the BBC. He has also presented programmes on the rise in status and wealth of the modern footballer and appeared in television commercials, such as Carlsberg and Morrisons supermarkets.^[11]

He is a columnist for the Daily Telegraph, Telegraph.co.uk and the BBC website on football issues and has also worked as a motivational speaker.

Controversy[link]

During an appearance on Match of the Day on 21 December 2011, while discussing the prominence of racism in English football following allegations against Premier League players Luis Suarez and John Terry, Hansen caused controversy after twice using the word "coloured" in reference to black footballers. The BBC received 82 complaints by the following morning while some criticised Hansen's choice of words on social network Twitter. Shamrock Rovers player Rohan Ricketts tweeted "Is this Alan Hansen guy taking the f****** piss?? I’m not coloured??? He is part of the problem when using that word. We are BLACK Alan! Wtf [sic]." Hansen issued an apology the following day, saying "'I unreservedly apologise for any offence caused – this was never my intention and I deeply regret the use of the word."^[12][13]

Personal life[link]

Hansen lives in Southport with his wife Janet.^[14]They have been married since 1980^[15]and have a son Adam and a daughter Lucy.^[16]

Honours[link]

Partick Thistle

• Scottish First Division: 1

1975–76

Liverpool

• League Championship: 8

1978–79, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1985–86, 1987–88, 1989–90

• FA Cup: 2

1985–86, 1988–89

• League Cup: 3

1980–81, 1982–83, 1983-4

• FA Charity Shield: 6

1977–78*, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1986–87*, 1989–90

• European Cup: 3

1977–78, 1980–81, 1983–84

• Screen Sport Super Cup: 1

1985–86

* Shared

Runner Up[link]

Liverpool FC

• 1977–78 League Championship (Level 1)
• 1978–79 European Super Cup
• 1981–82 Intercontinental Cup
• 1983–84 Charity Shield
• 1984–85 Charity Shield
• 1984–85 Intercontinental Cup
• 1984–85 European Super Cup
• 1984–85 League Championship (Level 1)
• 1984–85 European Cup
• 1986–87 League Cup
• 1986–87 League Championship (Level 1)
• 1987–88 FA Cup
• 1988–89 League Championship (Level 1)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Alan Hansen

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Alan Hansen

• Official past players at Liverpoolfc.tv
• LFChistory.net player profile
• Liverpool appearances part 1 1977/79-1979-80 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Liverpool appearances part 2 1980-81-1982-83 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Liverpool appearances part 3 1983-84-1986-87 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Liverpool appearances part 3 1987-88-1989-90 at Sporting-heroes.net
• Scottish caps 1979–87 at Sporting-heroes.net
• "Alan Hansen's Telegraph column archive" Telegraph.co.uk

v t e Scotland squad – 1982 FIFA World Cup 1 Rough 2 McGrain 3 Gray 4 Souness (c) 5 Hansen 6 Miller 7 Strachan 8 Dalglish 9 Brazil 10 Wark 11 Robertson 12 Wood 13 McLeish 14 Narey 15 Jordan 16 Hartford 17 Evans 18 Archibald 19 Sturrock 20 Provan 21 Burley 22 Leighton Coach: Stein

Michael Owen

Personal information
Full name	Michael James Owen[1]
Date of birth	(1979-12-14) 14 December 1979 (age 32)
Place of birth	Chester, England
Height	1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[2]
Playing position	Striker
Youth career
1991–1996	Liverpool
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1996–2004	Liverpool	306	(179)
2004–2005	Real Madrid	43	(19)
2005–2009	Newcastle United	71	(26)
2009–2012	Manchester United	31	(5)
National team‡
1997	England U20	4	(3)
1997	England U21	1	(1)
2006–2007	England B	2	(0)
1998–2008	England	89	(40)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 25 May 2012. † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 1 August 2009

Michael James Owen (born 14 December 1979 in Chester) is an English professional footballer who is currently a free agent after being released by Manchester United in June 2012.

The son of former footballer Terry Owen, Owen began his senior career at Liverpool in 1996. He progressed through the Liverpool youth team and scored on his debut in May 1997. In his first full season in the Premier League he finished as joint top scorer with 18 goals. He repeated this the following year and was Liverpool's top goal scorer from 1997–2004, despite a recurring hamstring injury. In 2001, Liverpool won a cup treble of the UEFA Cup, FA Cup and Football League Cup, and Owen was the recipient of the Ballon d'Or. He went on to score 118 goals in 216 appearances in the Premier League for Liverpool.

Owen moved to Real Madrid for £8 million in mid-2004; he was frequently used as a substitute. He scored 13 goals in La Liga and had the season's highest ratio of goals scored to number of minutes played. He returned to England the following season, joining Newcastle United for £16 million. After a promising start to the 2005–06 season, injuries largely ruled him out over the next 18 months. After his return he became team captain and was the team's top scorer for the 2007–08 season. After the final season of his four-year contract, Newcastle were relegated, and Owen moved to Manchester United as a free agent.

Internationally, Owen first played for the senior England team in 1998, becoming England's youngest player and youngest goalscorer at the time. His performance at the 1998 World Cup brought him to national and international prominence and he went on to score in Euro 2000, the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004. He is the only player to have scored in four major tournaments for England. He played at the 2006 World Cup but suffered an injury which took him a year to recover from. Occasionally playing as captain, he is England's seventh most-capped player and has scored a national record of 26 competitive goals, with 40 in total from 89 appearances, most recently in 2008.^[3]

Owen's long injury absence after the 2006 World Cup resulted in a dispute between FIFA and The FA and Newcastle United, and eventually resulted in an unprecedented £10m compensation award to Newcastle, and brought changes to the compensation arrangements between club and country regarding injuries sustained by contracted club players while on international duty. On 17th May 2012 he was released by Manchester United as he was not offered a new contract and thus Owen is now a free agent.^[4]

Early life[link]

Owen was born in Chester, Cheshire, the fourth child of Jeanette and Terry Owen.^[5] His father is a former professional footballer and played for clubs such as Chester City and Everton. Owen was introduced to football at the age of seven by his father who soon saw Michael as the most promising athlete in the family.^[5] A boyhood Everton fan,^[6] Owen attended Rector Drew Primary School in Hawarden, Flintshire, and by the age of ten, some of the nation's leading scouts were monitoring his progress.^[7]

He later played for Deeside Primary School's team (where he scored 97 goals; beating previous record holder Ian Rush by 25 goals)^[8] and joined the youth team of Mold Alexandra, playing with the under-10s at the age of eight after a local physical education teacher, Howard Roberts, persuaded the league to allow an under-age player.^[5] Owen scored on his debut for Mold Alexandra, a 2–0 win over local rivals Bagillt.^[8] After leaving Deeside, Owen attended Hawarden High School, where he also played for the school team.^[7]

Club career[link]

Liverpool[link]

Owen wearing Liverpool shirt before Jamie Carragher Testimonial Match (2010)

At age 12, when Owen started attending high school, he became eligible to sign a schoolboy contract with a club. He held talks with Chelsea, Málaga^{[citation needed]} and Arsenal, before he eventually signed for Liverpool (despite growing up as a supporter of their rivals Everton). Liverpool then persuaded him to attend the FA's School of Excellence at Lilleshall in Shropshire at age 14. Throughout this time, he continued his studies and achieved ten GCSEs.^[9]

Liverpool signed Owen after he graduated from Lilleshall at 16, and he joined the club on the Youth Training Scheme. The star of Liverpool's 1996 FA Youth Cup triumph, scoring in the final against a West Ham United team that included Frank Lampard and Rio Ferdinand, Owen scored prolifically as he rose rapidly through the Anfield ranks.^[10] After four months, Owen signed professional forms for the senior team just after his seventeenth birthday on 18 December 1996.

He scored on his Liverpool debut on 6 May 1997, the penultimate game of the Premier League season, which they lost 2–1 to Wimbledon at Selhurst Park.^[11]

With an injury to Robbie Fowler, Owen was thrust immediately into action as a first team regular alongside the likes of newcomer Paul Ince and playmaker Steve McManaman in the following 1997–98 season. He scored his first European goal for the club against Celtic in the UEFA Cup and recorded his first professional hat-trick against Grimsby Town in the League Cup. His first Premier League hat-trick came later that season at Hillsborough against Sheffield Wednesday, a week after he had scored two consolation goals in Liverpool's surprise 3–2 home defeat by Southampton.^[12]

Owen ended that season as a joint top scorer in the Premier League with Blackburn Rovers' Chris Sutton and Coventry City's Dion Dublin, scoring eighteen goals, and was voted the PFA Young Player of the Year by fellow professionals. Of the three, only Owen was selected for the 1998 World Cup squad.

The 1998–99 season proved to be another good season for Owen as he scored 23 Goals in 40 games for Liverpool. Despite his form, Liverpool were unable to mount a title challenge and their seventh-place finish was not enough to attain even a UEFA Cup place. Owen injured his hamstring in a league game against Leeds United on 12 April, which proved to be a recurring injury and prematurely brought his season to an end.

The next season was a frustrating one for Owen as he was out for lengthy periods due to the effects of the previous season's injury, but nevertheless he managed to score 12 goals and helped Liverpool to qualify for the UEFA Cup.

In the run-up to Euro 2000, Owen was still suffering hamstring problems and received treatment from the Bayern Munich doctor, Hans-Wilhelm Müller-Wohlfahrt.^[13]

In the 2000–01 season, Owen helped the club to their most successful season in several years. The team won the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup, with Owen scoring two goals in the last few minutes against Arsenal in the FA Cup final to turn what had appeared to be a 1–0 defeat into a 2–1 victory, the game has since been christened "The Michael Owen Cup Final".^[10]

Winning the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup allowed Liverpool to play in the Charity Shield and the UEFA Super Cup at the beginning of the 2001–02 season. Liverpool won both matches with Owen scoring the second goal of the 2–1 win over Manchester United in the Charity Shield and the third goal in the 2001 UEFA Super Cup win over European champions Bayern Munich. Liverpool thus became the first English team to win five trophies in one calendar year. Just a week later, Owen would again beat Bayern goalkeeper Oliver Kahn, as the English international hit a hat-trick in England's 5–1 win over Germany in Munich.^[14] At the end of the year, Owen became the first English player in twenty years and the only Liverpool player ever to win the European Footballer of the Year award. He was also voted World Soccer player of the year in 2001; he is the only English player to win the award and was the first Premier League player to do so.^[15] He scored his 100th goal for Liverpool on 21 December 2001 against West Ham United. Liverpool finished second in the league in the 2001–2002 season and Owen played a key part in the success, scoring 28 goals.

The 2002–03 season saw Owen on top form again as he hit 28 goals. Liverpool were on top of the table and looked like genuine title contenders for the first time in several years, but a run of bad results saw them eventually finishing fifth in the table. Owen also scored at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff when Liverpool beat Manchester United 2–0 to win the League Cup and scored his 100th Premier League goal against West Bromwich Albion.^[10]

In an injury-hit 2003–04 season he still managed to score 19 goals, getting his 150th goal for the club on 15 February 2004 against Portsmouth, but otherwise it was a bleak season for both him and Liverpool.

Following Gérard Houllier's sacking as Liverpool manager, speculation about Owen's departure from the club began. During the first few Champions League games at the start of the 2004–2005 season, Owen sat on the bench to avoid being cup-tied for the Champions League, something that would have meant he would be unable to play in European competitions for any other club that season. Since 1998 Owen had been Liverpool's top scorer every season until he left the club.^[16] Real Madrid signed him for a fee of £8 million on 13 August 2004, with midfielder Antonio Núñez moving in the other direction as a make-weight.^[17]

Real Madrid[link]

Owen at a training camp with Real Madrid

Following their successful bid, Owen was presented with the number 11 shirt by Real Madrid. Owen had a slow start to his Madrid career. He was often confined to the bench and drew criticism from fans and the Spanish press for his lack of form. A successful return to action with the England squad in October 2004 seemed to revive his morale, however, and in the first following match, he scored his first goal for the club, the winner in a 1–0 Champions League victory over Dynamo Kyiv.^[18] A few days later, he scored his first Spanish league goal in a 1–0 victory over Valencia.^[19] The scoring spree continued, as he found the back of the net in three of the next four matches to make it five goals in seven successive matches. He ended the season with thirteen goals in La Liga, with the season's highest ratio of goals scored to number of minutes played. Following Real's signing of two high-profile Brazilian forwards, Robinho and Júlio Baptista in the summer of 2005, the speculation arose that Owen would return to the Premier League. During his time at Real Madrid, Owen scored 18 goals from 41 games, 15 of which were starts.^[20]

Newcastle United[link]

On 24 August 2005, Newcastle United announced that they had agreed a club record fee^[21] of £16.8 million to obtain Owen, although they still had to negotiate with the player's advisers. Liverpool and local rivals Everton entered the fray, but were unwilling to match Madrid's asking price. As the 2006 World Cup was less than a year away, Owen wanted to get more playing time to secure his position as the first-choice striker in the England squad and joined Newcastle amidst rumours that he had inserted an escape clause valued at £12 million.^[22] On 31 August 2005 Owen signed a four-year contract to play for Newcastle United, despite initial press speculation that he would rather have returned to Liverpool.^[23] Some 20,000 fans were present at Newcastle's home ground of St James' Park for Owen's official unveiling as a Newcastle player.^[24][25] Several days after signing he suffered a thigh-injury in pre-season, which ruled him out for the start of the 2005–06 season. He scored his first goal for the club on his second appearance, the second goal in a 3–0 away win at Blackburn Rovers on 18 September – Newcastle's first win of the season. Owen scored his first hat-trick for Newcastle in the 4–2 away win over West Ham on 17 December.^[26] It was also a "perfect hat trick", with one goal scored with each of his left foot, right foot, and head.

On 31 December 2005, Owen broke a metatarsal bone in his foot in a match against Tottenham Hotspur. He underwent surgery to place a pin in the bone, to help speed the healing process. He was expected to be out of action until late March,^[27] but the healing process did not go as hoped and on 24 March he underwent a second, minor, operation. Owen then stated that he should be fit for the final few weeks of the season with Newcastle.^[28] His return to action finally came against Birmingham City on 29 April when he came off the substitutes' bench in the 62nd minute. After the match Owen stated that he was "not 100% happy" with his foot.^[29] He underwent a further X-ray and made himself unavailable for Newcastle's final game of the season.

A damaged anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee, sustained in the first minute of the group match against Sweden at the 2006 World Cup, kept Owen out of regular football for nearly a year, until April 2007. The seriousness of Owen's injury at the World Cup inflamed the so called 'club-versus-country' row in England, centring on the liability of the world governing body FIFA and the English national association The FA for the cost of injuries to players incurred while on international duty.^[30][31] Newcastle were aggrieved at the length of time Owen would now be out of action in forthcoming Premier League and Cup competitions as a result of the World Cup injury, particularly as he had been out for the half-season prior to the World Cup. Under the existing insurance arrangements between club and country, Fifa and the FA had been paying £50,000 of Owen's £110,000 weekly wages since he suffered the injury, totalling about £2m for the time he was out of action.^[32] By September 2006, Newcastle were threatening to sue the FA for further compensation, for a reported figure of £20m.^[30] The Owen case was a high-profile follow-up to an already ongoing legal claim for compensation from Fifa over an injury incurred by Abdelmajid Oulmers on international duty.^[31] The compensation claim by Newcastle included the £10m cost of buying Owen's replacement, Obafemi Martins, £6.2m towards Owen's salary costs while injured, the possibility of long-term damage to Owen's fitness and ability, the loss of league position and cup competition progress, depreciation of Owen's four-year contract, and the cost of medical treatment for Owen.^[30][32][33] In February 2007 Fifa made Newcastle a "final offer" of £1m.^[33] By April 2007, Newcastle were threatening to take out an injunction to stop the FA from picking Owen for England games.^[34] The club finally reached a compromise settlement figure with Fifa and the FA. Fifa indicated that the settlement was between £6m and £7m. The club, stating that Owen's wages had "now been paid in full", stated the overall compensation achieved totalled £10m.^[32] Resulting from the Owen compensation claim, the FA doubled their future insurance coverage of England players to £100,000, and FIFA introduced a compensation fund for injuries sustained at World Cups.^[31]

Owen training with Newcastle in 2007

Owen began light training on 12 February 2007, when pictures on the club's official website highlighted Owen running and carrying out minor exercises.^[35] He made his comeback from injury on 10 April 2007 in a 4–1 behind-closed-doors friendly against Gretna, scoring after ten minutes and then setting up fellow striker Shola Ameobi before coming off an hour later.^[36] Owen then started his first game for Newcastle United in over a year, against Reading on 30 April 2007 in a game that Newcastle United lost 1–0. He played the full 90 minutes, having a goal disallowed for offside.^[37] Owen was stretchered off an hour into Newcastle's game with Watford on 13 May 2007, suffering concussion after colliding with team-mate Matty Pattison.^[38]

On 9 May 2007, Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd reacted angrily to reports that Owen could move on to another club at the end of the 2006–07 season, due to a release clause in his contract. A report in The Times newspaper suggested Owen could be available for less than £10million and could be a target for the likes of Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal. Despite these reports, Shepherd warned Owen "to show some loyalty" and warned him that "none of the big four clubs want him."^[39] However, in a video posted on YouTube, a group of Liverpool fans asked Shepherd if they could re-sign Owen, he responded by saying that he would "carry Owen back to Liverpool" himself.^[40] Shepherd also stated his dislike of Owen's agent but praised Owen as a "good lad".^[41] This led many to believe that Owen would exercise his right to leave if the £9 million valuation was matched.^[40] On 10 June 2007, Owen's new manager at Newcastle, Sam Allardyce, confirmed the existence of the release clause in Owen's contract and admitted he feared that the club would be powerless to prevent Owen from leaving.^[42] However on 12 July 2007 Owen committed his immediate future to Newcastle United, stating: "I believe that these can be good times to be at Newcastle, which is why I am more than happy to be here."^[43]

On 17 July 2007, he scored for Newcastle in a pre-season friendly against Hartlepool United.^[44] Several days later, Owen picked up a thigh injury in training.^[45] Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce admitted that Owen was likely to miss the start of the forthcoming Premier League season due to the injury which "doesn't look as encouraging as we first thought."^[46] Owen made his comeback from injury in a club friendly on 13 August 2007 and declared himself available for Newcastle's next match, against Aston Villa, as well as England's forthcoming international matches.^[47] On 29 August 2007, Owen scored his first competitive goal for Newcastle since December 2005 when he scored in the Carling Cup against Barnsley.^[48] Three days later he scored in the league, with a late winner against Wigan Athletic.^[49]

In late September 2007, after an encouraging start to the season playing for both Newcastle United and for England, it was reported that he would urgently require an operation for a double hernia and would likely be out of action for at least a month.^[50] In his first match back from the hernia operation, he scored a late goal coming off the substitutes bench to clinch victory for Newcastle over Everton.^[51]

In November 2007, Owen suffered a thigh strain whilst on international duty, ruling him out for six weeks. This reignited the 'club or country' row, with then Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce voicing his disappointment that Owen was risked in a low-key friendly game against Austria.^[52]

After over three months without a goal, Owen scored the first goal of the second Kevin Keegan era in a 4–1 FA Cup third round replay win over Stoke City on 16 January 2008, although Keegan was only a spectator in the stands for this game. Owen was awarded the captaincy by Keegan on 19 January 2008. He scored his first league goal of 2008 on 3 February. Owen's goal in the 2–0 defeat of Fulham on 22 March 2008, which marked Newcastle's first win under Kevin Keegan's second spell as manager, also marked the first time in his Newcastle career that Owen had scored more goals for Newcastle than against them.^[53] By 5 April 2008, after his and the teams early season poor form, Owen had scored six goals in the previous six matches, with Newcastle registering four wins and two draws, lifting Newcastle into mid-table after earlier relegation fears. In the final game of the season, Owen scored in a 3–1 loss at Everton, finishing with 11 goals in total, putting him in equal 13th position for Premier League goals for the 2007–2008 season.

Owen missed all of the pre-season matches and training of the 2008–09 season due to a bout of mumps, which also kept him out of the international friendlies with the USA and Trinidad & Tobago in May 2008. He also suffered a calf strain during the summer months which kept him out of the opening game of the season against Manchester United at Old Trafford, a game which Newcastle drew 1–1. He made his return in the second game of the season against Bolton Wanderers on 23 August 2008, coming on in the 53rd minute for the injured Obafemi Martins. He scored the winning header in the 71st minute with the game finishing 1–0. Three days later he was named on the bench in a Carling Cup match away to Coventry City, he came on as a substitute and scored the winner in extra time in a 2–3 victory. In the 2008–2009 season he featured more consistently than in prior seasons, scoring four goals in twelve league appearances.

Under the transfer rules, with the 2008–09 season being the final year of his contract with Newcastle, Owen would have been allowed to sign a pre-contract agreement with other clubs during in January. On 22 December 2008, Owen rejected a new contract offer from Newcastle, but stated that he would not be seeking a move in the January transfer window and instead intended to postpone talks over his contract situation until the end of the season.^[54][55] With speculation over his future continuing in the second half of the season, Owen received "substantial damages" in June in the High Court in London and a public apology, following a story on 15 May in the Daily Express alleging that due to a lack of interest from Premier League clubs, Owen's career was effectively finished and he intended to retire.^[56][57] After a disastrous season in general for the club, which culminated in Owen's former Newcastle and England team mate Alan Shearer being brought in as a temporary manager for the final 8 games of the season, on the final day of the season on 24 May, Newcastle were relegated from the Premier League for the first time in 15 years. On 14 June it was reported that Owen's management company Wasserman Media Group had sent out a 34-page brochure advertising Owen to several potential clubs.^[58][59] On 22 June Owen confirmed he would not be re-signing for Newcastle, in preference for a move to a Premier League club, or other top-flight foreign club.^[55] It was reported that Owen would not begin negotiations with any other club until after 30 June when, on expiry of his contract, he would become eligible for a free transfer.^[55]

Manchester United[link]

Debut season[link]

Owen (right) playing for Manchester United, with Everton's John Heitinga.

On 3 July 2009, it was announced that Owen had signed a two-year deal with Premier League champions, Manchester United.^[60][61] He said that the approach from manager Alex Ferguson came from "out of the blue". He signed a pay-as-you-play deal and^[60]was handed the number 7 shirt vacated by the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid. The shirt had previously been worn by many of United's other illustrious players over the years including Eric Cantona, Bryan Robson, David Beckham and George Best.^[62]

Owen scored his first goal for United on his debut, scoring an 84th-minute winner after coming on as a substitute in a pre-season friendly against a Malaysian XI;^[63] he followed this up by scoring three more goals in United's pre-season games.^[64][65] Owen made his league debut for United when he came on as a substitute against Birmingham City on 16 August in a 1–0 win,^[66] and scored his first competitive goal in a Manchester United shirt against Wigan Athletic on 22 August in a 5–0 away win.^[67] On 20 September, Owen scored his first goal at Old Trafford as he netted in the sixth minute of stoppage time against local rivals Manchester City to give United a 4–3 derby win. This meant that Owen had now scored in his fourth derby, after netting in the Merseyside derby, El Clásico and the Tyne–Wear derby in previous years.^[68] Owen struggled to recall the moments immediately after the goal, and said that it ranked as one of his most important.^[69] On 27 October, Owen notched a goal in the 2–0 away win against Barnsley to qualify United past the fourth round of the league cup. On 3 November, Owen scored his first Champions League goal for Manchester United, as he grabbed United's first in the 3–3 draw against CSKA Moscow.^[70] Owen's seemingly slim chances of earning a place in Fabio Capello's England squad for the 2010 World Cup Finals in 2010 received a boost when on 8 December 2009, Owen scored his first hat-trick for Manchester United in a 3–1 away win against Wolfsburg in the Champions League, his first hat-trick since 2005.^[71] On 28 February 2010, Owen scored United's first goal in their 2–1 victory over Aston Villa in the 2010 Football League Cup Final, but had to be substituted after pulling up on 42 minutes. Originally thought to be a minor injury, on 5 March it was announced Owen required surgery on his hamstring, ruling him out for the rest of the season.^[72]

2010–11[link]

Owen netted his first goal for United back from injury in a 7–1 pre-season victory against a League of Ireland XI on 4 August 2010 at the newly built Aviva Stadium.^[73] On 22 September 2010, Owen netted his first goals of the season as he netted twice during a 5–2 away win over Scunthorpe United in the 3rd round of the League Cup.^[74] Four days later Owen scored his first league goal of the season as he netted United's second equaliser with his first touch in a 2–2 away draw against Bolton Wanderers.^[75] Owen's first goal of 2011 came in United's 2–1 FA Cup victory over Southampton at the St Mary's Stadium on 29 January.^[76] On the 25 February, United manager Alex Ferguson said that Owen was a key part of his squad for the rest of the season. However, he suffered a groin injury and missed his team's next four games. His return match was on the 19 March when he returned to the bench for United's game against Bolton.

By the time of United's penultimate game of the season, he had reached the number of league appearances required for a title winner's medal – his first in 15 seasons as a professional.^[77] The game, on 14 May 2011, only required United to draw with Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park to win the title, and a 1–1 draw secured it for them. Owen was an unused substitute in the game.^[78] Owen scored United's final goal in their last league game of the season, at home to Blackpool, in which the Reds won 4–2.^[79]

He was an unused substitute in Man United's uninspiring 2011 Champions League Final defeat to FC Barcelona marking the end of his season. He signed a one-year extension to his contract on 1 June 2011.^[80]

2011–12[link]

Owen started his first game of the season in the third round of the League Cup against Leeds United. He scored two goals in the first half, helping United to progress to the fourth round with a 3–0 win. His first goal came after he advanced to the box and scuffed a shot into the corner of the net. The second goal came on the half hour mark, when he met Mame Biram Diouf's cross with instant control, before firing a right foot shot into the top.^[81] Owen started his second game of the season in the fourth round of the League Cup, against League Two club Aldershot Town. He scored the second goal of the 3–0 win. Dimitar Berbatov completed a run down the right flank before pulling the ball back into the box, with Owen scoring past Ross Worner.^[82] Owen started in United's home UEFA Champions League group stage match against Oţelul Galaţi on 2 November, however he was substituted early in the first half when he pulled up with a thigh injury. In February 2012, Owen started light training with the Manchester United squad. From April 2012, Owen started full training but not yet ready for first team games. On the 13th May 2012, Michael Owen was named as a substitute against Sunderland in United's final fixture.

On 17 May 2012, Owen announced on Twitter that Manchester United would not be offering him a new deal, ending his three-year association with the club.

International career[link]

Owen had a highly successful record at Youth level, playing for the England under-20 team at the 1997 FIFA World Youth Championship and scoring three goals in four games. He was only briefly a member of the England under-21 team (netting on his only appearance in a win over Greece under-21 at Carrow Road) before he made his début for the senior team in a 2–0 friendly loss to Chile on 11 February 1998. Playing in this game made Owen the youngest player to represent England in the 20th century at 18 years and 59 days of age.^[83]

Owen's youthful enthusiasm, pace and talent made him a popular player across the country,^[84] and many fans were keen for him to be made a regular player for the team ahead of that year's World Cup. His first goal for England, against Morocco in another friendly game prior to the tournament, further enhanced his reputation.^[85] The goal also made him the youngest ever player to have scored for England,^[86] until his record was surpassed by Wayne Rooney in 2003.

Although he was selected for the World Cup squad by manager Glenn Hoddle, he was left on the bench as a substitute in the first two games. However, his substitute appearance in the second game, a 2–1 defeat to Romania, saw him score a goal and hit the post with another shot, almost salvaging a point from the game.^[87] After that, Hoddle played him from the start, and in England's second round match against Argentina he scored a sensational individual goal after beating defenders Roberto Ayala and José Chamot before striking the ball just outside the penalty box.

England drew that match and went out of the tournament on penalties, but Owen had sealed his place as an England choice and his popularity in the country had increased greatly. At the end of the year, he won a public vote to be elected winner of the prestigious BBC Sports Personality of the Year title.^[88]

He has since played for England in Euro 2000, the 2002 World Cup and Euro 2004, scoring goals in all three tournaments. This makes him the only player ever to have scored in four major tournaments for England.^[89] He also became one of only a handful of England players to appear in three World Cup tournaments when he played at the 2006 FIFA World Cup, although he did not score and was injured in the final group game.

In April 2002, he was named as England's captain for a friendly match against Paraguay in place of the injured regular captain David Beckham. Owen was the youngest England skipper since Bobby Moore in 1963,^[90] and in the following few seasons regularly captained England during any absence of the regular captain. Owen made his debut for the England national B-team in a friendly against Belarus on 25 May 2006, as part of his return to match fitness ahead of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He captained England B in this game, playing for 61 minutes before being substituted.^[91]

Owen started England's first two games of the 2006 World Cup, against Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago, but did not manage to score. After playing only 51 seconds of his third appearance of the tournament, and 80th cap, in the 2006 World Cup against Sweden, Owen badly twisted his left knee and was forced to leave the match on a stretcher.^[92] A scan of the injury on 21 June confirmed that Owen had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee, and was sent home, no longer able to play in the tournament.^[93]

Owen underwent successful reconstruction surgery, carried out by Dr. Richard Steadman, on 6 September 2006.^[94] The injury sidelined him until April 2007, meaning he missed England's first six matches in qualifying for Euro 2008. He returned for the England B game against Albania,^[95] and was named in the full squad for the games against Brazil and Estonia,^[96] with Owen stating "I feel sharp and, if given the chance, I feel confident when in front of goal."^[97] He played in both matches and scored against Estonia, breaking Gary Lineker's record for most goals in competitive internationals for England.^[98] Owen's latest international efforts include a brace for England in a 3–0 win over Russia on 12 September 2007.^[99]

With his two goals against Russia, he became the first player to score international goals at both the old and new Wembley Stadiums. As of 26 August 2008, Owen has been capped 89 times for England and scored 40 goals: he is fourth in the list of all-time top scorers for the England team, behind Bobby Charlton (49 goals), Gary Lineker (48) and Jimmy Greaves (44). He has also scored a record 26 goals for England in competitive matches (World Cup and European Championship games and the qualifiers for those tournaments) and has been captain for England in 7 matches.^[100]

As of December 2007, Owen has never gone more than four international games in a row without scoring a goal. Owen's future as first choice striker for England is uncertain however, due to competition from Manchester United's Wayne Rooney and fast-developing Theo Walcott amongst others. Owen's lack of action in Fabio Capello's first two England friendlies and Capello's selection of a single striker 4-5-1 formation also support the view that Owen's international opportunities may in future be limited.^[101]

2008 was a tough year for Owen as he was excluded from World Cup qualifiers against Andorra, Croatia, Kazakhstan and Belarus despite at times being in good goalscoring form and having a good workrate in a poor Newcastle side.^[102]

He was once again left out of the squad for the friendly against Germany in November 2008, despite forwards Emile Heskey and Wayne Rooney being unavailable for the match. However, Capello stated in November 2008 that Owen could still be reinstated to the side at some point in the future.^[103]

In March 2009, Owen admitted that all injuries he was sustaining were relating back to his injury in the 2006 World Cup tournament, and that he should not have attended the competition.^[104]

Owen's chances of an international recall deteriorated when Capello announced he would only be picked if he was playing regularly. In February 2010, having been used mainly as a substitute by United, he described his chances of a recall as "probably a long shot in racing terms". On 28 February, he suffered a hamstring injury in the League Cup final and was ruled out for the rest of the season. As a result, he did not make the squad for the World Cup in South Africa that summer.^[72]

International goals[link]

Scores and results list England's goal tally first.

Michael Owen – goals for England
#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Result	Competition	Scored
1	27 May 1998	Stade Mohamed V, Casablanca	Morocco	1–0	Friendly match	1
2	22 June 1998	Stade de Toulouse, Toulouse	Romania	1–2	1998 FIFA World Cup	1
3	30 June 1998	Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Étienne	Argentina	2–2 (3–4 on penalties)	1998 FIFA World Cup	1
4	14 October 1998	Stade Josy Barthel, Luxembourg City	Luxembourg	3–0	UEFA Euro 2000 qualification	1
5	4 September 1999	Wembley Stadium, London	Luxembourg	6–0	UEFA Euro 2000 qualification	1
6	27 May 2000	Wembley Stadium, London	Brazil	1–1	Friendly match	1
7	20 June 2000	Stade du Pays de Charleroi, Charleroi	Romania	2–3	UEFA Euro 2000	1
8	2 September 2000	Stade de France, Paris	France	1–1	Friendly match	1
9	24 March 2001	Anfield, Liverpool	Finland	2–1	2002 FIFA World Cup qualification	1
10	28 March 2001	Qemal Stafa, Tirana	Albania	3–1	2002 FIFA World Cup qualification	1
11	1 September 2001	Olympic Stadium, Munich	Germany	5–1	2002 FIFA World Cup qualification	3
14	5 September 2001	St James' Park, Newcastle	Albania	2–0	2002 FIFA World Cup qualification	1
15	17 April 2002	Anfield, Liverpool	Paraguay	4–0	Friendly match	1
16	21 May 2002	Jeju World Cup Stadium, Seogwipo	South Korea	1–1	Friendly match	1
17	15 June 2002	Stadium Big Swan, Niigata	Denmark	3–0	2002 FIFA World Cup	1
18	21 June 2002	Shizuoka Stadium, Shizuoka	Brazil	1–2	2002 FIFA World Cup	1
19	12 October 2002	Tehelné pole, Bratislava	Slovakia	2–1	UEFA Euro 2004 qualification	1
20	29 March 2003	Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz	Liechtenstein	2–0	UEFA Euro 2004 qualification	1
21	11 June 2003	Riverside Stadium, Middlesbrough	Slovakia	2–1	UEFA Euro 2004 qualification	2
23	20 August 2003	Portman Road, Ipswich	Croatia	3–1	Friendly match	1
24	10 September 2003	Old Trafford, Manchester	Liechtenstein	2–0	UEFA Euro 2004 qualification	1
25	1 June 2004	City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester	Japan	1–1	2004 FA Summer Tournament	1
26	24 June 2004	Estádio da Luz, Lisbon	Portugal	2–2 (5–6 on penalties)	UEFA Euro 2004	1
27	18 August 2004	St James' Park, Newcastle	Ukraine	3–0	Friendly match	1
28	13 October 2004	Tofik Bakhramov Stadium, Baku	Azerbaijan	1–0	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification	1
29	26 March 2005	Old Trafford, Manchester	Northern Ireland	4–0	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification	1
30	31 May 2005	Giants Stadium, East Rutherford	Colombia	3–2	Friendly match	3
33	12 October 2005	Old Trafford, Manchester	Poland	2–1	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification	1
34	12 November 2005	Stade de Genève, Geneva	Argentina	3–2	Friendly match	2
36	3 June 2006	Old Trafford, Manchester	Jamaica	6–0	Friendly match	1
37	6 June 2007	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn	Estonia	3–0	UEFA Euro 2008 qualification	1
38	8 September 2007	Wembley Stadium, London	Israel	3–0	UEFA Euro 2008 qualification	1
40	12 September 2007	Wembley Stadium, London	Russia	3–0	UEFA Euro 2008 qualification	2

Personal life[link]

Owen met English-born Louise Bonsall at primary school in 1984.^[105] The couple bought Lower Soughton Manor in Flintshire, North Wales where Owen keeps his cars and Louise keeps her horses. They got engaged on 14 February 2004, and married on 24 June 2005,^[106] at the Carden Park Hotel in Chester, Cheshire. The couple had initially planned to get married at their home, but changed plans when they were informed that if a licence was granted for a marriage ceremony the venue must be made available for other weddings for three years,^[105] so opted to marry in a registry office in informal clothing and have a lavish reception the next day in the grounds of their home.

On 1 May 2003, their daughter, Gemma Rose, was born.^[107] On 6 February 2006, they welcomed a son named James Michael. Their third child, a daughter, Emily May, was born on 29 October 2007.^[108] Their fourth child, and third daughter, Jessica, was born on 26 February 2010.^[109]

After Owen returned to the UK to play for Newcastle United, he travelled to a nearby BAE facility on a daily basis in order to fly, by helicopter, to train with his club. However, there is now a helipad installed within the grounds of the house to accommodate Owen's Eurocopter Dauphin, with which he both travels and is training to become a pilot.^[110] Owen was eventually banned from training to be a pilot by Newcastle United, due to excessive insurance premiums.^[111]

Owen also bought an entire street for his extended family (Austen Close, Ewloe), which is in an area close to where he used to live.^[112] and in 2008 was reported in the Daily Express as surveying the purchase of the original Walt Disney site with celebrity realtor Paul Grimshaw in Estepona, Southern Spain.^[113]

In 2004, Owen's sister Karen was assaulted by two youths, who attempted to kidnap her. When she revealed that she was pregnant, they fled.^[114]

Owen owns several cars and a helicopter and enjoys horse racing and gambling. He owns many race horses, trained by Tom Dascombe.^[115] He bred the horse Brown Panther which won a major race at Royal Ascot in 2011.^[116] Owen is the brother in-law of retired footballer Richie Partridge.^[117]

Owen starred in a series of adverts that charted his life, and rise to fame.^[118] In 2001, he was the advertising face of breakfast cereal "Nestlé Sporties". He also appeared in several adverts for the washing powder Persil, in a contract worth £1,000,000.^[118] Owen was selected as one of the two cover athletes for Pro Evolution Soccer 2008.^[119] He has been an ambassador of the Swiss watchmaker Tissot since 1998 and has a contract with car manufacturer Jaguar.^[120][121]

Owen had indicated that he would like to become involved with Chester City in some capacity when he retires, as it was his local team growing up and his father is a former Chester City player.^[122]

Career statistics[link]

Club[link]

Statistics accurate as of match played 22 December 2011^[123]

International[link]

^[124][125]

Honours[link]

Club[link]

Liverpool

• FA Cup (1): 2000–01
• Football League Cup (2): 2000–01, 2002–03
• FA Community Shield (1): 2001
• UEFA Cup (1): 2000–01
• UEFA Super Cup (1): 2001

Manchester United

• Premier League (1): 2010–11
• Football League Cup (1): 2009–10
• FA Community Shield (1): 2010

Individual[link]

• PFA Young Player of the Year (1): 1997–98
• PFA Premier League Team of the Year (1): 1997–98
• Premier League Player of the Month (1): August 1998
• Premier League Golden Boot (2): 1997–98, 1998–99
• Carling Player of the Year (1): 1997–98
• FIFA World Cup Best Young Player Award (1): France 1998
• BBC Sports Personality of the Year (1): 1998
• Ballon d'Or (1): 2001
• Premier League 10 Seasons Awards (1992–93 to 2001–02): Domestic Team of the Decade
• FIFA 100

Notes[link]

1. ^ Includes other competitive competitions, including the FA Community Shield, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup

References[link]