Why Capello would be crazy to ditch Newcastle United's Michael Owen

I like Michael Owen. In fact he is probably the one England international who no one can seriously dislike.

Apart from a penchant for a spot of gambling he is a decent bloke and a very talented player. Many observers have predicted his demise at club and international level because of his chronic ability to pick up injuries.

Indeed it was in his third full season as a pro at Liverpool that he picked up the dreaded hamstring injury, the worst possible type for the kind of player so reliant on speed and ability to turn quickly.

Thierry Henry is now suffering from the same kind of nightmarish hamstring trouble that Owen has had to endure for years.

In 2001 the FA Cup final was christened the "Michael Owen Final" after he grabbed two goals in the final minutes to defeat Arsenal. That season Liverpool became the first English club to win five trophies in a calendar year.

In 297 games for Liverpool Owen scored an amazing 158 goals. His incredible goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup will always be remembered as will the brilliant hat-trick he scored against the Germans in Munich.

All of these successes and goals have made Owen’s choices since then seem rather peculiar. We had Gerard Houllier’s Anfield sacking controversy and whether Rafa Benitez wanted rid of him. Or could it have been that Owen would not have enjoyed the Benitez rotation policy?

Did Benitez see Owen as injury prone and want to cash in on his transfer value to build his own Liverpool? No one really knows, and although his goals-to-minutes ratio on the pitch at Real Madrid was good, it was a serious mistake made by Owen.

His injuries since returning to England have not helped. It was reported both Liverpool and Everton wanted him but Owen chose to go to Newcastle - another bizarre choice given the Geordies’ inability to achieve much with the resources available to them.

Owen’s International record is admirable with 40 goals in 88 appearances, and the signs of recovery at Newcastle bode well for the 28-yedar-old. Yes, he still is that young.

This, then, brings into question whether his international career is all but over. What a complete load of rubbish! Okay he may not be as fast as he was due to the hamstring problems but his other injuries (cruciate ligament, hernia and metatarsal) are, hopefully, behind him.

Fabio Capello is trying out a number of ideas and Owen is beginning to score again. Yet the media are trying to create a mountain out of a mole-hill by twisting Owen’s words after the French match to make it look as though he wasn’t happy. Why?

Do you honestly think a man of Capello’s experience is going to drop the best striker England have when it comes to the crunch matches? At 28, Owen has enough experience on his side to fire England, and himself, back to glory at the next World Cup.

Kevin Keegan is wisely deploying Owen just behind the front two at Newcastle to maximise his superb movement and eye for goal.

Whatever formation Capello uses at the moment may not necessarily be the one he opts for permanently. All talk of Owen’s international future is media powered and not in the best interests of the National team. England would be crazy not to use this man.