Souness: Michael did well to Owen up
Newcastle boss Graeme Souness is backing new signing Michael Owen to bounce back from his England misery and launch the latest phase of his career in style.
The 25-year-old, a £17million (€25.2m) signing from Real Madrid, is expected to line up alongside former international colleague Alan Shearer for the visit of Fulham to St James’ Park tomorrow.
His new team are still looking for their first Premiership goal of the campaign and have collected a solitary point.
Owen will find himself under the spotlight after England’s defeat in Belfast, but Souness is confident he will turn in a more characteristic performance.
“The thing that impressed everyone when he came on the scene as a 17-year-old was he already spoke like a man,” said Souness.
“God has given him an attitude that he can deal with anything football throws at him, and although it is going to be a very special day tomorrow, he will deal with it.”
Owen’s readiness to take some of the heat for England’s Windsor Park World Cup horror show was laudable, but Souness expected nothing less.
“That is what men do.” he said.
“They do not turn around and point fingers at other people, the first thing they do is look at themselves in the mirror. That is the way I was brought up and that is the way I have tried to go through my life.
“Michael Owen is that, and we have a dressing room full of men like that now - go back to the Manchester United game (4-1 FA Cup semi-final defeat) with Jean-Alain Boumsong.
“That is the attitude we must have if we are going to be successful.”
Owen’s partnership with Shearer, which ended when the 35-year-old retired from international football after Euro 2000, will resume after a five-year break, and the newcomer admits he did not expect to play with his former sidekick again.
“You never expect to,” said Owen.
“We played together quite a bit for England, and you never expect to play with him again, especially when he announced that this was going to be his last season.”
The relationship between the two men remains as strong as ever – “I’m not as quick as I was five years ago,” Shearer joked as the pair held a joint press conference, and Owen was swift to reply with a smile: “Nor am I.”
Their link-up at international level had its critics, who suggested they both wanted to occupy the same space, but it did yield goals at the highest level, and although Shearer admits there will be subtle changes this time around, he is hopeful the potency will remain.
“I hope it hasn’t changed a great deal,” he said. “Probably both of our play has changed slightly, and particularly mine. Certainly in five years, it has.
“I have had to adapt, I have had no choice, but I hope there are still some goals in there. That is what we get paid for, to score goals and to win matches, so hopefully that has not changed.”
If Shearer and Owen are to prosper, they will need good service, although the man who is expected to provide a great deal of it, Nolberto Solano, will have to bide his time.
The Peruvian, who has returned to Tyneside from Aston Villa, still has two matches of a three-game ban to serve.
But having tasted the highs of Sir Bobby Robson’s reign, Solano is convinced Newcastle can return to the Champions League and challenge for trophies again.
“This club all the time has to be challenging for that place in the top four,” said Solano.
“I know it will not be very easy – in the Premier League, you are playing against top teams – but that is the challenge every season.
“That is why the manager has brought good players in this season. It won’t be very easy, but we need to be there, we need to fight and we need to prove it every week.
“On paper, we look very well, but in football you need to prove it every week.”
Solano will be joined on the sidelines by the injured Kieron Dyer, Emre, Shola Ameobi and Craig Moore, although Albert Luque has shaken off an ankle problem and Titus Bramble is included for the first time since fracturing his elbow.
