I'm not sure if those quotes are legit or fictionalised, but if the latter, some of your finest work yet
We will always have Paris and Casablanca. And Lisbon and Geneva, Tallinn and Charleroi. And, unforgettably, St Etienne, Munich and Shizuoka. Those who seek to chart Owen's formidable achievements for his country must equip themselves with an atlas as well as an abacus.
In amassing 40 goals, Owen set an
England record by scoring in four consecutive tournaments, even striking in four separate continents, finding the mark in places as contrasting as New York and Tirana, Baku and Niigata.
Back from his travels, Owen delighted England supporters at home, scoring at Anfield, St James' Park, the Riverside, Portman Road, Old Trafford and at Wembley (Twin Towers and Single Arch).
But it is over. Owen's dream of finishing his career on a high, of gracing a fourth
World Cup, has been ended by his oldest enemy, a shredded hamstring.
The one opponent this tough competitor could never defeat, a vulnerability to injury, has terminated his season and his hopes of a final hurrah with England.
How cruel that the injury should be sustained at England's HQ. Events at Wembley in last Sunday's Carling Cup final encapsulated Owen's career: a nerveless strike on a big occasion followed by the frustration of injury.
One of those watching on, Fabio Capello, a man not given to sentiment, has always been dismissive about his "tormentor'', ignoring Owen's reputation for scoring in major games.
As many England fans were quick to point out on their private message-boards, Owen should have been under consideration for South Africa simply as an impact sub, as a late rescue act who needed only a couple of touches to hurt opponents.
An injury to Jermain Defoe, a similar type of striker to Owen, would surely have prompted a rethink by Capello. Not now. The door to the England dressing room really is closed on Owen. He hass limped into the treatment room at Carrington and will not reappear until after the World Cup. It is over.
What a shame. Apart from Wayne Rooney and Defoe, there is no better English finisher around. Even this season, when people have sought to belittle a forward who stands behind only Sir Bobby Charlton, Gary Lineker and Jimmy Greaves among England's all-time scoring greats, Owen still showed his enduring class.
There was the masterful way he engineered his chance against Manchester City or, last weekend, the clinical strike against Aston Villa at Wembley. Treasure was found in European fields.
After Cristiano Ronaldo on six, guess who is the leading scorer in the Champions League this season? Yes. Michael Owen. His four goals have come in only 267 minutes, a remarkable return.
Those who deride the hat-trick against Wolfsburg as a 'dead rubber'', coming when Manchester United had qualified, ignore the reality that the Germans were fighting for their lives.
As the City game showed, Wembley confirmed and Europe highlighted, Owen scores at crunch moments. But his game has always been about more than goals.
Glenn Hoddle's 1998 comment that "I'm not sure whether he is a natural goalscorer'' stirred huge controversy. The point that Hoddle was trying to make – in that 'English as a foreign language' way of his – was that there was more to Owen's game than simply putting the ball in the back of the net.
Even as a teenager, Owen was a more rounded footballer than perceived, a point Hoddle stressed when phoning the player to clarify his remarks. "You create chances for others,'' the then England coach said in an exchange reported in Owen's autobiography
Off The Record. "To me, a natural finisher is someone who stands in the box and waits for the ball. But you can link play.''
Hoddle had long been an admirer of Owen, even making a special trip up the A11 to Carrow Road on a cold December night in 1997 to watch Owen partner Heskey against Greece Under-21s. The pair were unstoppable.
Afterwards, I telephoned Hoddle, as part of a pool agreement, and he was effusive in his praise.
When Hoddle announced his next full squad, Owen's name was there and he duly became England's youngest international of the 20th century against Chile. The rest is history.
Or hysteria if you were an Argentina defender at France '98. Many of the England fans now lamenting Owen's cruelly-timed incapacitation were in St Etienne when he scored against Argentina.
They loved the way he took David Beckham's slightly high pass into his stride with the outside of his foot and then embarked on that odyssey through Argentina's defence. Roberto Ayala backed off, crazily. Jose Chamot could not react in time. Carlos Roa was beaten by a shot back across him.
Each of these was a respected international performer. Each was embarrassed by an 18 year-old. Inevitably, the anger surrounding Beckham's dismissal and the heartache of penalties fuelled an emotional retreat from St Etienne. But there was also hope for England's future granted by the blur of a white shirt speeding through blue-and-white-striped ones.
That goal was special but what also impressed those present was the way Owen responded to Hoddle's tactical instructions when Beckham departed.
Reacting with powerful lungs and brains, Owen and Alan Shearer shuttled between midfield and attack, ensuring England never looked depleted. In the shoot-out, Owen followed Shearer's advice to "do what you always do, and stick it in the ------- net''.
England fans will never forget that night, nor the one in Munich in September, 2001. Whether from Nicky Barmby's cushioned header to Heskey's knock-down or Steven Gerrard's cool pass, Owen's response was devastating.
Germany's humbled keeper, Oliver Kahn, almost required counselling afterwards.
This ability to vanquish good opponents ensures that the name of Michael Owen will always be cherished by England fans.
They were in Shizuoka in 2002 when he spooked Lucio. Brazil's accomplished centre-half became so scared by Owen's proximity that he took an eye off Heskey's over-hit pass.
The ball bounced off Lucio and Owen was away, gliding through and dinking it expertly over Marcos. Until Ronaldinho turned the game on its head, England seemed to have the world at their feet. Thanks to Owen. It is over – but the memories never will be.
OWEN HIGHS...
ST-ETIENNE, 1998 Owen flashes past Jose Antonio Chamot, Nelson Vivas and Roberto Ayala before beating Carlos Roa to put England ahead against Argentina and announce his gifts to the world.
MUNICH, 2001 The Liverpool striker scores a hat-trick as Sven-Goran Eriksson’s side rout Germany 5-1 in a World Cup qualifier, a result widely regarded as the national side’s best of the decade.
ANFIELD, 2002 Owen captains his country for the first time at his club’s home, scoring as England warm up for Korea and Japan with a 4-0 win over Paraguay.
AND LOWS...
SHIZUOKA, 2002 Owen puts England ahead in the World Cup quarter-final against Brazil before seeing goals from Rivaldo and Ronaldinho eliminate Eriksson’s team, despite the latter’s dismissal.
COLOGNE, 2006 After starting against both Trinidad and Tobago and Paraguay in the opening two games of the tournament, Owen tears his cruciate knee ligament after just 51 seconds of England’s final group game.
PARIS, 2008 Owen’s last game in an England shirt and his only appearance under Fabio Capello comes as a second-half substitute in a 1-0 friendly defeat to France.
For those who follow England across the globe, memories of Michael Owen's goals are as indelible as the accompanying stamps in the passport.
www.telegraph.co.uk
