The manager of Manchester United, Alex Ferguson, has said that if Michael Owen had not been hit by so many injuries during the course of his career, he would have turned out to be one of the greatest footballers of all times.

This statement of Ferguson has come at a time when Owen is very close to the end of his career.

Owen had announced a few days ago that he would quit football at the end of the ongoing season.

In spite of the injuries, Owen’s career was a successful one. He scored more than 250 goals in his entire career.
Owen played for a total of 5 clubs, but, he was most successful playing for Liverpool. He played for the Reds for 8 years between 1996 and 2004 and scored 118 goals for them in 216 matches.

Owen also played for Manchester United for three years and performed quite decently for them as well. He featured for the Red Devils in 31 matches and found the net 5 times.

Manchester United released Owen at the end of the last season. Thereafter, in September last year, Stoke City signed him.

When asked how good Owen was as a player, Ferguson said, “He was brilliant in terms of skills. Had he not been hit by injuries regularly in his career, he would definitely have become one of the best footballers.”

“Whenever he was 100% fine, it was tough not to include him in the XI. He had that spunk in him. I think he is one of those guys who underperformed in their career.”
“His hamstring problem never got cured. It disturbed him right through his career. Even when he was playing for us, he suffered from that hamstring problem several times.”