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Michael Owen picks combined LFC/Man Utd eleven

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Owen has done his best to draw the ire of Liverpool fans again

Owen has done his best to draw the ire of Liverpool fans again

Having left Liverpool in the lurch during Rafa Benitez’s first season in charge, opting to join Newcastle on his return to England ahead of Liverpool and then moving to Manchester United to see out his retirement, you’d think Michael Owen would be going out of his way to endear himself to a group of fans he was once idolised by.

On the contrary, Owen’s choosing of a combined Liverpool & Manchester United eleven seems destined to draw the renewed ire of Liverpool fans up and down the land.

If you’ve not seen the team Owen picked yet, here it is in full: David De Gea, Darmian, Smalling, Skrtel, Shaw, Carrick, Schweinsteiger, Coutinho, Depay, Rooney, Benteke.

So, that’s 8 of his 11 picked from Old Trafford.

Now, most Manchester United fans probably chuckled to themselves reading that, whilst a few would try to argue that there should be less Liverpool players. On the other hand, whilst most Reds will generally pride themselves on being (or at least attempting to be) fair in such matters, you’re probably scratching your heads about two or three of those. We certainly were.

Where De Gea’s concerned, there’s no argument – he’s hands down better than Mignolet. And, at present, it’s hard to argue about either Lovren or Toure getting in ahead of Smalling, whilst Sakho may well (on paper) be a far better defender and all round player than Smalling, it’s been in fits and starts and he isn’t a regular for Liverpool.

But three of the players Owen has chosen (Darmian, Schweinsteiger, Depay) from United were only signed this summer, and a fourth – Luke Shaw – featured only 20 times last season. This either means he was injured, suspended, or his manager simply didn’t fancy him enough. So it’s hard to see what Owen is basing his views on here. If it’s his start to the current season then there’s an argument to be had that Joe Gomez has been just as impressive.

There’s no doubting that Schweinsteiger, in his day, would’ve walked into most sides but it’s widely agreed that Bayern were only prepared to let him go as he’s now well past his peak. So would he really be an option ahead of either Henderson or Milner? Similarly, Carrick is now a player that is either injured or simply left out; is he really to be preferred ahead of those two?

Obviously, there’s plenty to debate there, just as there is much to be argued about the merits of choosing Depay ahead of Firmino. Neither player has played more than half a dozen games for their new sides, so how one can be selected ahead of the other is debatable.

If we’re to base this on their respective forms prior to moving to the Premier League, then surely Firmino wins that battle given that he came from a weaker team in a much stronger league where he impressed greatly. On the other hand, Depay played in one of the strongest sides in a much weaker league and both players have similarly impressive records in terms of goals and assists.

To any United fans lurking about though, this is all conjecture and is obviously open to debate and opinion. But the most odd decision of Owen’s is in choosing Darmian over Clyne.

Sure, Darmian looks a solid enough full back but prior to moving to United few can claim to have even heard of him, nevermind have a well-researched opinion of him. On the other hand, Nathaniel Clyne has been roundly regarded as one of the Premier League’s strongest right backs since his first season with Southampton in 2012-13, with a number of Young Player of the Year awards to his name prior to joining Liverpool and Southampton.

And just to put the cat among the pigeons, it is widely believed that Clyne chose Anfield ahead of Old Trafford, so it would be some kind of immense good luck on United’s part if they happened upon a better player by having to settle for their second choice.

At the end of the day, these ‘combined’ teams are never going to suit anybody and, in the end, you may well ask yourself: ‘who cares’? But it certainly seems in this case that Michael Owen’s uninformed brand of football punditry shows no signs of abating.

What do you make of Owen’s team – has he lost the plot, is he on a wind up or does he have a point? Let us know your thoughts below.

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I'm a 32 year old Liverpool fan, living in the heart of the City Centre. I've supported the club since the day I was born and have been writing articles for L4L for over 3 years, writing close over 350 articles in that time. My favorite player of the past generation is Sami Hyypia.

I am the current editor for L4L, with my day job being in R&D for the NHS.

2 comments

  • Oliver says:

    Damian has showed better defensive capabilities than Clyne in the first games. I would chose that over Clyne’s attacking prowess on the basis that team has enough attack. Also it is well known that Clyne to Man U was just rumours and there was no bid. Schweinsteiger has not dipped enough yet to be in contention against Henderson, even if Henderson is really good. Bayern sold schweinsteiger as he is going to dip SOON. Not because he has already gone below the standard (he’s first choice for Germany…) I agree with most of the selection, baring in mind some are 50/50 selections, you have to go with one.

  • Tyndale says:

    choosing Depay over Firmino and Darmian over Clyne is an absolute nonsense!!!

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