Blow for United as Owen Ruled Out

Manchester United’s Michael Owen will miss the rest of the season after sustaining a hamstring injury at the Carling Cup Final at Wembley. Owen pulled up feeling his hamstring while running at full pace. He had earlier scored United’s equalising goal. Although probably not in the forefront of Fabio Capelllo’s mind for a reserve striker’s role at the World Cup, his unavailability gives the Italian one less option, but presents another forward with a great opportunity.

Owen, who has scored 40 goals in 89 games for England, but has not played for them since March 2008 in a 1-0 win over France.

Owen seems to have been around for ages, having burst onto the scene as a 16-year-old at Liverpool in 1996, scoring 118 goals in 216 goals for the Reds even as they began to be a fading force in English football. Despite that, he is relatively young at 30, and has recovered from such obstacles before. Spells at Real Madrid and Newcastle followed, but the Chester born striker who could have also played for Wales, has been plagued with injuries throughout his career, missing spells for groin, ankle, thigh, hernia, metatarsal and knee injuries.

When Sir Alex Ferguson picked him up for United at the start of this season, it raised some doubts as to the wily Glaswegian’s judgment, as Owen was an injury prone veteran with the additional sin of being a former Liverpool player.

Owen however had answered those critics with nine goals in all competitions, including a hat-trick in the Champions League win against Wolfsburg, an injury-time winner in September’s Manchester derby before that big equaliser in the Carling Cup final.

Now, with the transfer window closed, some of those critics will be quietly muttering ‘I knew it’ to themselves as United struggle with the problem of finding the right foil to the red-hot Wayne Rooney.

Also now out of the World Cup is Chelsea’s Portuguese defender Jose Bosingwa. He too will miss is out for the rest of the EPL season, and Chelsea confirmed his knee injury will also cause him to miss the World Cup. The fullback had been back in light training after surgery but has now been told he needs another operation.

Chelsea themselves are currently struggling with the absence of goalkeeper Petr Cech, key midfielder Michael Essien (knee) and left back Ashley Cole (broken ankle).