Michael Owen Insists He Is 'Always' Liverpool & Claims He Tried to Return 'Several Times'

Michael Owen has often been criticised in recent years for forgetting his Liverpool roots, especially given that he regularly assumes of the role of a former Manchester United player when working as a television pundit, as well as an ill considered tweet complaining about a bad flight he'd been on in the immediate aftermath of the jury verdict from the Hillsborough inquest.

Yet Owen, who also turned out for Real Madrid, Newcastle and Stoke over the years, has claimed when he pictures himself in a shirt, it is 'always' Liverpool.

Phil Cole/GettyImages

"When I close my eyes and think of what shirt I was wearing in my career, it would always be a red Liverpool shirt," the retired striker told Planet Football.

Owen even named the 2001 FA Cup final win with the Reds as the 'best day' of his career.

"That's the club I started at, where I had some of my best memories, the club in my heart. I tried to go back several times and it was close a couple of times, but it wasn't to be," he added.

GERRY PENNY/GettyImages

Owen was blasted by Liverpool fans for joining fierce rivals United when he was released by Newcastle in 2009. The former England man has defended himself by pointing out that he needed a club, while declaring that he had actually wanted to rejoin Liverpool first.

"Some Liverpool fans were disappointed that I joined United, but that was one of the times when I tried to go back to Liverpool and the door was not open," the 38-year-old explained.

"What was I meant to do? I had to play for someone and the opportunity to join a massive club like United, work under Sir Alex Ferguson and challenge for trophies was too good to turn down."

Alex Livesey/GettyImages

Owen insists he has no regrets from his playing career, although he laments the impact that injuries ultimately played in curtailing him.

"You do lose confidence when you start picking up injuries and it affects the way you play. I started doing things differently when I didn’t have confidence in my body and that was not nice," he said.

"It was hard when I had the injury problems and that extra edge I thought I had was taken away."