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"Golden boy" Michael Owen is returning to England. The 25-year-old forward decided to leave Madrid and move to Newcastle.
"The Magpies" new acquisition will cost more than 15 million pounds sterling (around 23 million euros). Today the footballer should undergo a medical examination and sign a four-year contract.
"Michael's acquisition, along with Alan Shearer's arrival (who joined in 1996 from Blackburn for 15 million pounds - ed. note), are the proudest moments of my work," said Newcastle director Freddy Shepherd. "Our fans love center forwards, and M. Owen is just a fantastic goal scorer. He is the player that we want to build the team around, and we hope that the new acquisition will help bring success back to the club."
One of the best forwards of his country arrived in his homeland today, where he negotiated with Newcastle and his former club's leaders. However, the latter, having players like Djibril Cisse or Fernando Morientes in their ranks, refused to pay the transfer fee requested by the "Royal" club. Liverpool offered only almost half the sum - 8 million pounds (12 million euros).
That is the amount the "Reds" received from Real Madrid last summer for the player they nurtured. Despite M. Owen being the second most productive player in the team of the Spanish vice-champions, scoring 16 goals, the team's coach Wanderley Luxemburgo usually only let the Englishman play a few minutes before the end of matches.
This summer, M. Owen stated that with the 2006 World Cup approaching, he wants to spend much more time on the field than last season. However, at Real Madrid, which acquired Julio Baptista and Robinho this offseason, such conditions for the forward would hardly be possible. "Newcastle" made the best of the situation, paying a record sum for the club and bringing in a capable forward to their ranks.
A significant role in convincing M. Owen, who initially viewed Newcastle's offer unfavorably, was played by another legendary English forward, A. Shearer. It is said that the 35-year-old player called Madrid several times trying to persuade the player to accept Newcastle's offer instead of the much lower Liverpool's offer.
The newcomer's debut, wearing black and white Newcastle jerseys, is expected to take place in a couple of weeks, once all transfer documents are sorted out.
