Michael owen quotes

I was proper, proper fast at one point, and obviously I'm not now, so I've lost certain things, but when I was that fast I didn't need to do certain other things in a game. It was such a potent weapon.

I wouldn't change my life for the world at the moment.

Everton have a healthy list of injuries.

I've always been a player that likes to get round the back and get crosses in for other people. When I first burst on to the scene some people only saw the goals I was scoring. More recently they've taken notice of the goals I've set up. It is nice to be recognized for that.

You're on your own out there with ten mates.

An emotion that lives with me is a sense of what might have been had injuries not robbed me of my most lethal weapon - speed.

It was a real eye opener and I'm really pleased that I spent a year out there [in Real Madrid].

A lot of people have lost interest in watching England play. To get motivated to watch international football, you need your country to be having some form of success and England haven't had any for a long time now.

Bayern Munich are probably the standout team on the planet.

I think nowadays Manchester United is more competitive than it's ever been. Obviously, over the last one or two decades, they've always had one challenger or two challengers maybe, whether it be Arsenal or Chelsea.

I remember running around the park as a kid and pretending, shouting out 'Michael Owen in the cup final. He scores!' To actually fulfil that dream when you're older and score two goals made it just a magical day.

Nobody on this planet had a range of passing like Paul Scholes. Training every day was a pleasure just watching him. Unbelievable career.

Best players I played with? Striker wise, well, I had a great record with Emile Heskey - he would be one of my favourite partnerships because we were so different and worked together so well.

Best atmosphere I ever played in was at Celtic Park in the UEFA Cup for Liverpool.

I don't particularly enjoy watching international football in the way that I used to. It hurts me to say that, but it's true.

He's fantastic on the ground but obviously he is very tall. (on Peter Crouch)

If you only ever give 90% in training then you will only ever give 90% when it matters.

All Newcastle fans need to know is that I will be giving everything for their cause now.

England have players who can rattle anyone's feathers

I'm sure clubs have a lot of power these days.

I feel that every time I get the ball at the moment I am going to score.

I don't want to be modelling G-strings. It's not that good for my image – I'm a footballer not a tart

I have never thought of a scenario where international football was not a massive part of our [England] game.

The bottom line is that I wanted to come back and play in the Premier League again and wake up on Saturday morning and really fancy getting out there and playing in front of this fantastic support, scoring goals and enjoying football. (on returning to the premiership)

Give me a great Champions League game or an exciting Premier League game ahead of an international match and I'd love that to reverse. A lot of people have lost interest in England games, it is quite hard to watch.

When you put better teams in front of you, that's when the big players rise to that occasion.

I can't believe anyone can have played the game of football as well as Messi.

I think it's getting tougher and tougher, all the big teams are getting stronger and there's more of them.

To be at the top, you have to have a competitive streak in you. If you're not performing, you've got to be angry with yourself.

[Wayne Rooney] has to be viewed as a great England striker if he breaks Sir Bobby Charlton's record. Scoring goals at international level is much more difficult than it was a few years back because even the lesser teams are well organised and don't concede too many goals these days.

If you cut me in half, I'm a footballer.

I was born to score goals, I feel.

There have been more things wrong with England than just Wayne Rooney in the last few years.

The Spanish league is fantastic, but it has not the great passion the English Premiership has got.

To stay in the game, you have to stay in the game.

I have always been confident that I would make it to the top.

[Wayne Rooney] best tournament was the 2004 European Championships, when he played alongside me and made such a big impact, but it hasn't happened for him at the World Cup for one reason or another.

I loved [Real Madrid]. It was a real experience, playing with a great team. One of the first questions I'm often asked is 'What was Madrid like?' It's got that mystique about it. It's a magical place and a magical team, and everything about it is great.

Clubs don't like their players going off to play international matches and you can see a scenario where they eventually start to make it more difficult for international sides to call up players.

I don't believe in superstitions. I just do certain things because I'm scared in case something will happen if I don't do them

There's nothing quite like a World Cup.

If you look at football over the last 50 years there has been a gradual decrease in goals, you don't see too many 10-nils these days, but two, three or four goals per game is a good spectacle.

To be the best you have to forget partying and concentrate all your energies on the football.

I think in terms of best players, I would have to say Ronaldo, the real Ronaldo, the Brazilian one. I was fortunate enough to have a year with him at Real Madrid. He was at the end of his career and was probably half the player he was. But, in his prime, he was quite simply astonishing.

As everyone knows I've got a passion for horses.

I want to be a top-flight football player, so I lead the life that enables me to be that type of player. I prefer to be seen in a decent light rather than an indecent one.

Often the biggest test is when the chips are down and you've got to stick together as a team.

For me there's nothing better than putting the white shirt on for England and playing for England. I'd get worried if it wasn't like that.

I have a great family, good friends, a nice girlfriend, my own house. I have got everything how I want it to be.

I hate to admit this but I don't even know how to make a cup of tea or coffee. I can boil a kettle for a pot noodle and I've been known to warm up some food in the microwave.

You are affected by the surroundings, the mood of people, by confidence. I am no different.

Henry had taken striking on to a different level

It bothers me when I don't score.

A new club is like having a new girlfriend – you don't have feelings straight away

My Dad was briefly an Everton player and I used to follow them as a boy.

The better the opposition put in front of you, the better your team plays.

Scholesy was a genius, absolute genius. He was a center-forward's dream, you could make a run and he'd put the ball perfectly in your path. Any footballer you ask will always tell you that Scholesy was one of the best players they've ever played with.

I thought I would break the scoring record when I got to 40 goals by the age of 27 or 28, but then Fabio Capello took over and he never picked me again.

While the World Cup is great every four years, I think people struggle to get themselves excited about qualifiers against the smaller nations. It will take some good performances from the national team to get the feel-good factor back, as far as the England team goes at least.

Fortunately I am a mentally strong person and believe I will learn from the experience and continue to improve as a player and person because of it. (on breaking his leg)

Manchester United will always be a competitor, just because of the very size of them.

There is no doubt that I would have won more honours had I signed for Manchester United as a youngster.

I think the greatest Real Madrid player of all time is Cristiano Ronaldo followed by Ferenc Puskas. Ronaldo equalled Puskas’ great record of 242 goals in fewer games. He was also the fastest Real Madrid player to score 100 goals and holds the record for most goals scored for Madrid in a season.

You always come back to earth with a thump at some stage. Life has it's ups and downs; the acid test is how you handle the downs.

The Champions League is more interesting to watch than international football and the quality is superior as well.

The longer my career has gone, the more I seem to score... It's experience and age and knowing where the ball's going to be.

You need people who score goals. That's how you win games

I don't get a lot of enjoyment out of sitting there for an hour and a half watching a game like we saw between Ireland and England last Sunday.