Back in the summer of 2009, Liverpool had just come off the back of an impressive Premier League title charge.
Although the Reds came up short by four points to Manchester United, the team of Steven Gerrard, Fernando Torres, Javier Mascherano and the rest looked set to go again a year later. Xabi Alonso had left, but with Alberto Aquilani brought in to replace him, Liverpool looked ready for another tilt.
Had Jamie Carragher had his way though, Aquilani wouldn’t have been the biggest name joining the Reds that summer. Speaking on The Overlap today, Carragher confirmed that he’d asked manager Rafa Benitez to consider bringing Michael Owen back to Anfield to prevent him joining United.
“There were three clubs,” Carragher explained, when Owen was put forward as a ‘traitor’ for joining Liverpool’s arch rvials. “Everton, he spoke to David Moyes, Stoke and Man United but he wanted to go to Liverpool.
“I spoke to Rafa Benitez in the summer. I got wind that he was about to sign for Man United. He’d almost come back before when he was at Real Madrid and he said to me ‘listen, this is going to get sorted in two or three of days, if you just to let Liverpool know this is the situation.’
“I said [to Rafa], number one, he just wants to come back, he’s gutted he left, he’s happy to be sub. And number two, he’s going to go to Man United you can stop that and get a little thing on them.”
Carragher reveals Benitez conversation
This was never going to work on Rafa. The Spanish coach had initially sold Owen to Real Madrid in 2004 and had also seemingly refused the chance to re-sign him since.
Having had his pleas turned down by Benitez, Owen eventually joined United, angering just about every Liverpool fan in the process.
But continuing to give his thoughts on the matter, Carragher argues that his old England and Liverpool teammate hardly had a choice in the matter.
“He was desperate to come back [to Liverpool],” says the pundit. “But when you look at his options: Everton he’d have been slaughtered as well. He’s thinking ‘I’m Michael Owen, no disrespect, but Stoke?’ Then you’ve got the best manager anywhere at that time wanting to manage him.
“So, there’s a bit of me that can understand it. It’s a move I wouldn’t have made myself but I think there’s a bit more to it. In his head he’s thinking ‘I’m writing my career off if I don’t go there.'”
In the one sense, you can understand where Carragher is coming from. With Owen seemingly a little desperate, a move to United was his very last option. It was almost too good to be true from a footballing point of view. He’d also pretty much already burned his bridges with Liverpool having left on the cheap to Madrid.
But at the same time, it’s really the only club that if you join, there’s no coming back in the eyes of Reds supporters. Even at Everton, he’d have been forgiven over time.
That Owen was desperate to return every year after leaving in 2004 barely even registers. If he hadn’t have left in the first place, he wouldn’t have needed to come back at all. The whole sorry saga could have been avoided.
Receive a digest of our best Liverpool content each week direct to your mailbox
