, we need this like a hole head, he must be deffo be filling stevie with pish that life there is this that and the bloody other, you done the dirty on us Michael without coming out in public dont be making stevie do the same, he wernt to quick telling stevie he was going tho was he 
Simon Talbot in Madrid
Saturday October 30, 2004
The Guardian
Michael Owen did little to ease the fears of Liverpool fans yesterday when he admitted that his former team-mate Steven Gerrard had shown great interest in Real Madrid amid reports that the Spanish club are interested in making him their latest galàctico .
Speculation in the Spanish media has suggested that Madrid, who have been in desperate need of a defensive midfielder since the departure of Claude Makélélé, are keeping tabs on Gerrard with an eye to a move next summer.
Owen claimed that he had "not seen" the reports and insisted: "I wouldn't want to say anything that would annoy the Liverpool fans." He did, though, admit: "It would be very nice for him to be linked with such a big club."
While he would not be drawn on the speculation, Owen did reveal that his former team-mate has maintained a keen interest since his own £8m move in the summer. "When I scored the first goal I picked up the phone and there were about 20 messages - and Steven was one of them," he added. "That was nice of him and shows that he is interested."
The England striker will retain his place in the side when Madrid face Getafe at the Bernabéu on Sunday night, having scored three times in as many games. He followed up his goalscoring Champions League debut against Dynamo Kiev 10 days ago with the only goal against Valencia in the league and scored again in a 2-1 win over Leganés in the Copa del Rey.
"Joining Real was a massive challenge for me and lots of people doubted what I was doing and what the president was doing signing me, but I was always confident that I would be successful. Thankfully, I've shown I can play football a little bit," Owen said.
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"It's nice to score three goals and I feel more part of the team now. It's difficult to say whether or not I have improved as I player, but I believe that I can offer more for the team still. This is just the start."
It is not just about Madrid, though, and Owen accepted the risks he was taking at international level by joining a side where Raúl and Ronaldo stood before him in the pecking order. Indeed, he sought the advice of Sven-Goran Eriksson before moving to Spain.
"I spoke to Sven a couple of days before it was made public that I was signing for Real Madrid," he said. "He was very pleased for me; he said it would be a massive challenge and told me there were no problems on his side. I knew that if I wasn't playing regularly I couldn't expect to do so for England and I said that when I wasn't getting into the side here. At the moment everything's looking good, although I know that if I lose my place there will be questions again."
I dont think he txt Heskey to congratulate him on his first goal 
