Premier League boss hinted at huge transfer after UEFA Super Cup and re-signed club legend

Gareth Bale has joined the TNT Sports activities line-up forward of the brand new season and can cowl his outdated membership Tottenham within the Champions League.

Spurs threw away a two-goal lead with 5 minutes left to lose the Tremendous Cup on penalties to Paris Saint-Germain.

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Until the Welshman dusts off his boots to play for Spurs, it will not generate the identical pleasure as one switch saga after the Tremendous Cup in 2005.

Rafael Benítez wasted little time in making waves upon his arrival at Liverpool the yr earlier than.

The Spaniard sanctioned Michael Owen’s £8million transfer to Actual Madrid solely weeks after succeeding Gérard Houllier as supervisor.

Owen joined Liverpool aged simply 12 and went on to interrupt into the primary staff in 1997 earlier than quickly turning into an England common.

The striker stays the membership’s seventh-highest scorer, having fired in a powerful 158 targets in 297 video games for the Reds.

Owen’s exploits on Merseyside noticed him scoop the Ballon d’Or in 2001 – the final Englishman to raise the coveted award.

Nonetheless, Liverpool went on to win the Champions League in the course of the first season with out him, following the Miracle of Istanbul.

Owen, in the meantime, scored 16 targets in 45 appearances throughout his one season on the Santiago Bernabeu earlier than seeking to return dwelling.

Benitez initially tried enjoying coy on the potential of signing a participant he had agreed to promote a yr earlier within the build-up to the Tremendous Cup.

“We’ve not made a proposal for Michael Owen and I’m trying just for a centre-back, not for a centre-forward,” Benitez mentioned.

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“I smile after I learn within the Spanish press that we now have opened talks with Actual Madrid. Michael Owen is an efficient participant however we now have six gamers in that place and we’d like a right-winger and a centre-back.”

Benitez additionally rejected his captain Steven Gerrard’s declare that Liverpool couldn’t afford to see Owen be part of any of their Premier League rivals.

“My precedence is to work with the gamers I’ve in the mean time to enhance them, with Crouch, with Morientes,” he added.

“I have to be targeted on my staff whereas making an attempt to signal higher gamers however in the mean time the reply is similar: we now have six strikers for under two locations.”

Benitez’s poker face was lastly damaged by his former Liverpool chief government, Rick Parry, within the hours earlier than the 2005 Tremendous Cup.

Newcastle had agreed a shock £17m membership document deal for Owen, however the-then 25-year-old made it clear he most well-liked to return to Anfield.

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Parry mentioned: “There has by no means been a cut up between us and Rafa over Michael or some other participant.

“It isn’t a no or a sure – there was loads of hypothesis and we are going to see subsequent week.

“It is all the time encouraging when a participant says he desires to come back to Liverpool.”

The Premier League champions ultimately confirmed their hand after a 3-1 extra-time victory over CSKA Moscow within the 2005 Tremendous Cup.

However with Liverpool in the end unable to match Newcastle’s supply, Owen revealed years later that he was left with a call to make.

He informed BT Sports activities’ ‘What I Wore’: “I spoke to Newcastle and Newcastle agreed that if I signed for them, I can do one yr after which they may promote me to Liverpool for an agreed charge of £12m.

“Then if I do one other yr, then they’ll promote me to Liverpool for £8m, and one other yr for £4m.

“So yearly, it could be extra enticing for Liverpool to purchase me again.”

Benitez even alluded to such a clause forward of Owen’s return to Anfield with Newcastle in December 2005.

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Robbie Fowler returns dwelling

He mentioned: “I can see him returning to Anfield at some point.

“That would occur. Why not? He is a prime participant and each membership is all the time concerned about signing good gamers.

“We tried to signal him proper till the top.”

But a month later, Benitez was unveiling Owen’s former Liverpool teammate, Robbie Fowler, over 4 years after his shock exit.

“I can not actually imagine it is occurred once more,” mentioned the person dubbed ‘God’ by the Anfield crowd following his free switch from Manchester Metropolis.

“I am so completely happy it is horrifying.

“To journey again to Anfield was nice. To truly put pen to paper… nicely, it’s one thing that I’ve wished to occur for a very long time.”

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Why did Owen by no means rejoin Liverpool?

In an interview on Rio Ferdinand Presents FIVEOwen admitted he tried once more to return to Liverpool after leaving Newcastle.

He mentioned: “I did not go from Liverpool to Manchester United as a result of that may have been nearly unimaginable, however everybody is aware of I grew up enjoying for Liverpool within the academy and after I left to go to Madrid after which got here again dwelling, I wished to go to Liverpool.

“As soon as I went to Newcastle… that nearly broke my coronary heart in a approach as a result of I wasn’t going again to what I understand to be my membership.

“After I completed at Newcastle it was once more a case of can I get to Liverpool and Brendan Rodgers mentioned he did not want me on the time.

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“At that time, you’ve simply obtained to go to whoever is the perfect out there. As soon as I obtained over that [feeling of] is everybody going to hate me and the ache of have I ruined all the things and many others. and many others, it was a no brainer [to join United]. I knew everybody, I performed at England with all of them, I knew Sir Alex and all the remainder of it.

“So to play in that stadium, dwell at dwelling, I used to be enjoying in the perfect staff on the time, I had the possibility of profitable; the league, the Champions League and all the remainder of it, it was an absolute no-brainer.

“I had no doubts in any respect that was the perfect transfer career-wise to make and folks should do not forget that footballers, sure we now have loyalties, but when we will not play for them then . . . “

Owen went on to attain 17 targets in 52 video games for Man United, profitable the Premier League title and League Cup throughout his three-year spell.

He then moved to Stoke Metropolis in September 2012, which proved to be his remaining marketing campaign as knowledgeable.