Celtic have had a number of great strikers who have represented the club since it was formed in 1887.
Celtic fans growing up in the 2000s will always associate Henrik Larsson as the best ever to have worn the green and white Hoops.
Indeed, there have been many other strikers before Larsson’s time who are legends at the club but this time, a Liverpool legend has admitted that he would have loved to have strutted his stuff at Celtic Park before he hung up his boots.
Michael Owen admits he ‘grew up’ a Celtic fan
Michael Owen is revered at Liverpool as a legend after he won the UEFA Cup, UEFA Super Cup, an FA Cup, two Charity Shields and the Ballon d’Or whilst at the club.
The former two-time Premier League top goalscorer also played for England, Real Madrid, Manchester United and Newcastle United before he hung up his boots at Stoke.
But now, he opens up on the one thing he would have loved to have done before his career ended.
Owen told the Daily Record, “I guess it purely comes down to your family, doesn’t it? My dad grew up, spent a lot of time in Scotland, his mum was Scottish. My grandparents’ side of the family are Glaswegian, the Donnelly family.
“You listen, you hear, you ask questions in your childhood, and as part of my dad’s upbringing was Scottish and all his side of the family were huge Celtic fans.
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“Naturally, my dad got me a Celtic shirt when I was a kid and I followed them as my team in Scotland. That’s the only connection. Of course, I played against Celtic a couple of times but that’s my only connection. It’s my dad’s side and my dad’s side of the family were all big Celtic fans.”
Michael Owen ‘would have loved to have played for Celtic’
“Yeah, I would have loved to have played for Celtic,” continued Owen, “I really would. That’s one thing I think. At that point in my career, I thought to myself, there were a lot of players at the time going up there, of similar ilk.
“Top players that maybe were around the 30, 31, 32 type of thing and having two or three years up scoring a few goals. And let’s get it right, you’ve got most of the ball all the time. When you’re playing for Celtic, you get most of the ball, you’re going to get more chances.
“It’s actually quite nice, as a player that’s in their 30s to not have to chase around and defend much. You always got the ball; you’re always getting chances. It would have been a lovely way I think to end my career. I don’t wish, but I would have liked at the time to maybe have gone to Celtic towards the end of my career.”
Real Madrid stars (from bottom L) Roberto Carlos, Michael Owen, David Beckham and Jose Maria Gutierrrez and Raul Gonzalez pose for a group photogra...
Photo credit should read SAEED KHAN/AFP via Getty Images
Michael Owen had a great career over his time as a top striker and fans of a certain generation will remember him as this kid with incredible pace and power.
When Owen retired in 2013 Celtic had Gary Hooper and Anthony Stokes as the two main strikers at the club. Hooper scored 31 goals that season and Stokes hit just seven.
Could the former Real Madrid striker have done a job at Celtic at that time? Possibly. However, injuries were starting to blight his career before he hung up his boots.
This is just another one of those transfer ‘what-ifs’ that Celtic fans will need to ponder.