Hargreaves' reemergence makes him a wanted man

	Canadian-born Owen Hargreaves is the player around whom new coach Steve McClaren wants to build his England midfield. Simon Bruty/SI
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From just a simple conversation with Owen Hargreaves, it's clear the man lives in two worlds. His accent alone is a bizarre amalgam -- it's peppered with the long vowel sounds of a Canadian, reflecting his Calgary upbringing. But the more dominant lilt is that of a northern Englishman from the Manchester area.

That, in a nutshell, summarizes Hargreaves' tumultuous career: Canadian youth prospect, German-league prodigal son, English national-team star. Hargreaves' name was barely recognizable to English fans when he made his England debut in 2001. After all, he was a Canadian who was only eligible to don an England uniform because of his parents' heritage.

But Hargreaves made a name for himself on one of the toughest stages in international club soccer: at Bayern Munich. The holding midfielder cracked the first team in 2000, a year in which the German superclub won both the Bundesliga and Champions League. Three seasons as a steady performer earned him a place on England's '02 World Cup squad, but Hargreaves saw little action after getting injured in the team's second match.

After disappearing into obscurity for several seasons, he put perhaps his best foot forward in the '06 World Cup. Used mostly as a substitute by Sven-Göran Eriksson, Hargreaves showed fierce resolve, and left Germany as one of the few England players credited with putting on a decent performance. He's now a favorite of new England manager Steve McClaren, who has built his team's midfield around the Anglo-Canadian.

This season might be Hargreaves' shining moment as a professional. At 25, he's peaking, attracting unprecedented attention as one of England's finest. And he has a golden chance to seize a prominent role at Bayern, where Michael Ballack's departure has left a huge hole in the midfield. That is, if Hargreaves stays -- his dream of finally playing in the English Premier League is close to a reality, as he is reportedly close to a move to Manchester United.

Hargreaves called me from Munich on Thursday, shortly after making the trip back from England's 4-0 friendly victory over Greece in Manchester. We discussed his new roles with both England and Bayern, his rumored move to United, his Canadian upbringing and his hero -- not David Beckham, but a certain tongue-waggling basketball legend.

SI.com: You've gone from being an unknown foreigner when you debuted for England to someone who's now being called an anchor for the team. That's quite a progression.

Hargreaves: Anybody who's involved with soccer understands the business works very quickly, both good and bad. Obviously we have a new coach in Steve McClaren, and after the World Cup, I'm getting more of an opportunity to play, whereas before I'd just play for 10 or 15 minutes here and there towards the end of the game. Now I'm getting to play on a regular basis. I've never played in the Premier League, so English fans hadn't seen me play regularly and didn't really understand what I could bring to the team. Now they can see the different dimension I bring.