Today represents a landmark day for Michael Owen given it is the anniversary of two major milestones in his Liverpool career
Michael Owen could have joined Inter Milan before eventually leaving Liverpool for Real Madrid
Michael Owen could have joined Inter Milan before eventually leaving Liverpool for Real Madrid
If asked to pick Michael Owen’s career highlight, one of two memories are likely to spring to mind for your everyday football fan. Firstly, his career-defining solo goal for England against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup, which transformed the then-teenage forward into a global star overnight.
But if not that strike, you are likely to instead opt for his hat-trick when the Three Lions ran out 5-1 winners away at Germany in September 2001.
A few months after that treble, and on this day 23 years ago, Owen would become the first English winner of the Ballon d’Or since former Liverpool striker Kevin Keegan in 1979. Since then, none of his compatriots have been able to follow in his footsteps.
READ MORE: I saw Arne Slot do something at Liverpool press conference that would have made Jurgen Klopp proudREAD MORE: 'As I understand' - Man City legend claims Mohamed Salah has agreed new Liverpool contract
Yet it wasn’t his international exploits that earned Owen such a prize. Rather, it was his performances for the Reds in the most iconic campaign of his career as they clinched an unprecedented cup treble in the 2000/01 season.
Gerard Houllier’s leading striker, Owen would score 24 goals from 46 appearances that season as Liverpool won the League Cup, FA Cup and UEFA Cup, while also qualifying for the Champions League for the first time. Meanwhile, his club record in 2001 alone saw him return 31 goals from 49 games, and lift five different trophies.
However, he might not have achieved any of that if Inter Milan had had their way, with Owen admitting he came close to signing for the Serie A side in 2000.
“I came close to joining Inter Milan around the turn of the century, they came in for me,” the now 45-year-old said, who celebrated his birthday on Saturday. “But I was happy at Liverpool at the time and didn’t take talks any further.
“My agent made me aware of the interest and said that they had enquired about getting me. That was when Italian football was the biggest in the world and then Spain took over, and since then the Premier League has taken over now.”
While not specifying the exact moment of Inter’s interest, it is likely to have been in response to losing Ronaldo to a serious injury during the 1999/2000 season.
The Brazilian superstar ruptured a tendon in knee and required surgery in November 1999. Making his comeback the following April, he played only six minutes during the first leg of the Coppa Italia final against Lazio before suffering a complete rupture of the knee-cap tendons.
Ronaldo's physiotherapist Nilton Petrone claimed "his knee-cap actually exploded", and called it "the worst football injury" he'd ever seen. Il Fenomeno missed the entire 2000/01 season and most of the 2001/02 season through injury, before returning in time to star for Brazil as they won the 2002 World Cup.
Inter would sign Robbie Keane from Coventry City in a £13m deal in July 2000, with the future Liverpool forward arguably identified as an alternative to Owen. Hakan Suker also joined the San Siro outfit that summer, while Christian Vieri and Alvaro Recoba made up their attacking ranks. They had also boasted the services of the likes of Roberto Baggio, Ivan Zamorano and Adrian Mutu in 1999/00.
Owen would complete a controversial transfer to the continent a few years later, leaving for Real Madrid in a £12m deal at the start of the final year of his Reds contract. While he scored 16 goals for the Spanish giants, he ultimately found starting opportunities limited behind Ronaldo, who had joined the club in the summer of 2002 after World Cup glory, and Raul, and returned to England with Newcastle United after just one season.
Liverpool had been in talks regarding a potential deal to re-sign Owen, but had no intention of matching the Magpies’ club-record £17m bid. And once he joined bitter rivals Manchester United on a free transfer in the summer of 2009, his relationship with Reds fans was significantly damaged.
But regardless of such ill-feeling, he remains a Liverpool legend courtesy of his efforts for the club. After signing professional terms on this day in 1996, Owen scored 158 goals from 297 appearances and won six trophies and the Ballon d’Or during his time at Anfield.
Could he have enjoyed similar success had he moved to Inter in 2000 instead? There may have been no silverware, with the club finishing fourth and fifth in Serie A respectively, losing the Coppa Italia final in 2000 before suffering a quarter-final exit in 2001, while also suffering a UEFA Cup round-of-16 exit in 2000/01 after failing to progress past the Champions League third qualifying round.
Meanwhile, Keane would flop at the San Siro as the manager who signed him, Marcello Lippi, was sacked early in the season. The Republic of Ireland international would fail to score in six Serie A appearances for Inter, netting three times in 14 appearances before moving back to England and joining Leeds United on loan in December 2000 after being deemed surplus to requirements by new boss Marco Tardelli.
Of course, it’s plausible that Owen would have fared better and had a positive impact on Inter’s own results. But his struggle to adapt to life in Spain just a few years later, unable to take Ronaldo’s playing in the Real Madrid starting XI, would in fact suggest similar turmoil had he moved to Italy when aged just 21.
'Where were you in Istanbul?' was the chant aimed in the striker's direction when he returned to Anfield for the first time with Newcastle United in 2005, just months after Liverpool had won the Champions League. What would the reception have been had he walked away on the eve of the Reds' treble success?
Consequently, considering what he went on to achieve with Liverpool in 2000/01, both as part of the team and as an individual, it’s safe to say that turning down Inter Milan proved to be one of the best decisions Owen ever made during his playing career.
*A version of this article was first published in October 2023.