Owen scores four, takes season's total to 8
Posted: Saturday October 24, 1998 03:19 PM
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Owens, who was sent to the bench during last week's Valencia match, scored four goals in Liverpool's 5-1 victory Laurence Griffiths/Allsport |
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- Michael Owen fired out a defiant message to the Liverpool management as he scored four goals in his team's 5-1 English Premier League demolition of Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Owen was left on the bench on Tuesday after Roy Evans and Gerard Houllier decided he was showing signs of tiredness in training -- and Liverpool labored to a scoreless draw.
"The first conclusion is that we did right to rest him," said Houllier after Saturday's Anfield blitz that took his team up to third in the standings.
"He maybe had to refuel his batteries - we did it for his own good and he knows that.
"I thought his mental and physical state was just right today - I think we probably did the right thing at the right time," added the Frenchman.
Evans, who introduced Owen to senior soccer last season, was similarly happy with the decision.
"He hadn't quite got the sharpness in training and we have to remember he is a commodity for a long, long time," he said.
"He's come so far in such a short time and there has not been a minute of the day that has not been football.
"We'll say the rest has done him good -- others may argue he could have scored four against Valencia."
Owen was keeping his thoughts to himself on Saturday, obviously happy to let his actions on the pitch do the talking.
His goals showed the full spectrum of the remarkable talent that made him one of the stars of the World Cup.
The first was a delicate curling shot which he followed up with an accurate drive. The third was a cooly-taken penalty after Karlheinz Riedle had been felled in the box and the fourth came after a trademark lightning 30 meter burst.
The 18-year-old said after his midweek rest: 'I feel okay and fine in myself. I just want to play.
"But the manager does protect me. He pulls me out of training and pulls me out of certain things.
"It wasn't as if the manager was saying I wasn't playing well enough. He said it would be to the benefit of myself.
"When I was away with England, a lot of the lads had days off, so leading up to the Valencia game I didn't train too much and they took that into consideration before selecting the team."
Owen had been going through what was for him a slump in scoring -- managing just two goals in his previous 11 games for club and country.
But nobody at Anfield had any doubts about his talent and his ability to find the net.
Speaking after the Valencia game, Houllier said: "People are consequently looking for chinks in his armor but they won't find any. All of this criticism will not knock his confidence.
"He will bounce back for sure."
If he continues to bounce back as he did on Saturday, than Owen can look forward to a few more midweek rests -- starting with Tuesday's League Cup game against second division Fulham.
League leader Aston Villa lost its 100 percent home record when it drew 1-1 with Leicester City. Manchester United struggled to gain ground as it was trailing 1-0 at Derby County in a game that kicked off late after traffic troubles.
Elsewhere, Southampton collected its first win of the season, 2-1 over Coventry. Tottenham Hotspur beat Newcastle 2-0 with both goals from Norwegian Stefan Iversen while Charlton beat West Ham 4-2.
Wimbledon drew with Middlesbrough 2-2 while Sheffield Wednesday fought to a goalless draw with Everton.
Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
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