Ian McGarry told The Supplement that Michael Owen will have to take a pay-cut if he does leave Newcastle.
Michael no longer worth top money, warns McGarry
The days of Michael Owen commanding a huge salary are long gone.
That was the credit-crunching verdict of the
Sunday Supplement as they discussed the Newcastle forward's future.
Interim Toon boss Joe Kinnear admitted this week that he expects Owen, 29 today, to leave St James' Park when his current deal expires at the end of the season.
Owen has been linked with the likes of Manchester City, Everton and Tottenham already but the biggest issue could be dough and not destination.
The Sun's Ian McGarry knows Owen well and warned him that even if he manages to secure a return to Liverpool or a move to big-spending Chelsea, the days of commanding a mega-bucks salary are as far behind him as his England days.
"He's currently on £108,000 a week at Newcastle United," he told the
Sunday Supplement.
Value
"Most of us around this table have known Michael for a long time and he knows his own value.
"Fair play to him, but he won't want to take a pay-cut. He'll definitely have to though, because no-one is going to pay him £108 grand at any club, not in the current financial climate, not with his injuries, no club. Not ever."
With even Chelsea apparently now turning their attentions to cheaper alternatives such as Emile Heskey, McGarry believes Owen's decision will prove whether the 29-year-old still has a burning ambition to play at the highest level, or simply earn the highest salary.
The Premier League's second-tier clubs appear to where he is headed, and
The Sun man believes that even then, the striker does not necessarily represent value for money.
"Interestingly when Chelsea were looking at him, they were looking at a pay-as-you play type deal with a basic of around £60,000 a week supplemented by bonuses - but they were not interested," he said.
"They just don't want to pay him. I think they're saying he's not worth it.
Problem
"Michael Owen is a very wealthy individual already. If he desperately wants to play top-flight football for his career's sake, surely he would go to Chelsea for 60 grand or go to Liverpool for 20 grand - or pay them to play? Who cares?
"We've talked a lot about Michael Owen after the last year, but can anyone remember the last good game he had for club or country? That's Michael's problem."
McGarry also admitted that wherever Owen does end up - and he could yet stay at Newcastle of course - his England days are over.
But the national team's loss could be a club side's huge gain, particularly if you are Mark Hughes, struggling for goals and under pressure to spend the money now flooding Manchester City.
"The attraction of going to Manchester City would be they don't actually have a number nine striker right now," said McGarry.
"Mark Hughes is constantly rotating his strikers because none of them are scoring goals. You put Michael Owen and Robinho together and with his reverse passes in, one could have a field day.
"His goals-to-game ratio is OK - it's just the games that he's missed. That's the problem."
