Michael Owen has revealed the only two footballers who ever made him feel inferior. Thanks to his transfer sagas with Liverpool, Real Madrid, and Manchester United – not to mention his often divisive punditry – many have overlooked just how extraordinary the 2001 Ballon d’Or winner was at his peak since his retirement.
In the early days of his career, English football had rarely witnessed such a meteoric rise. Owen became the Premier League’s youngest-ever Golden Boot winner in the 1997/98 season, scoring 18 goals at just 18 years old. He then retained the award the following term. By the time he left Liverpool, his record of 158 goals in 297 appearances had secured him a place inside the club’s top ten all-time scorers, which he remains ninth on.
The 2001 Ballon d’Or winner didn’t include himself when naming the best England lineup out of players from his generation.
So, in layman’s terms, Owen was never ‘just’ a mouthpiece for the beautiful game. Yet, even players of his calibre can have moments of doubt. As he was breaking through, there were two strikers operating at a level so high that Owen realised – no matter ambitious he was – he could never quite be the very best, as he revealed in an appearance on Rio Ferdinand’s podcast.
Ronaldo
The first player Owen mentioned during a segment about the very best players in the world was Ronaldo. O Fenomeno (‘The Phenomenon’) is highly regarded as the most complete forward in the beautiful game’s history. At the peak of his powers, the two-time Ballon d’Or winner was virtually unplayable, and his ability to shake up the entire back line with one quick turn translated into an astonishing goal tally of 371 in 580 appearances, making him one of Brazil’s all-time greats.
He also won the World Cup twice, and watching him as a youngster gave Owen plenty of reality checks. “When I was growing up, like 15 or 16, and watching R9, I was thinking ‘oh no’,” he said, “I was thinking I was going to be as good as it gets, I think I’m going to be world-class blah blah blah, and then I watch him and I think, ‘oh no, I’m just going to be his understudy.'”
Thierry Henry
“When he came to the Premier League, I thought, ‘I am never going to win a Golden Boot ever again,'” Owen remarked about Thierry Henry. The Frenchman transformed English football upon his arrival to Arsenal in 1999, scoring 175 goals and providing 74 assists in just 258 Premier League appearances. Along the way, he won two league titles – including the iconic Invincibles season – four Golden Boots, and two PFA Player of the Year awards, cementing his reputation as arguably the greatest player the league has ever seen.
Owen explained that while he respected legends such as Alan Shearer and Ruud van Nistelrooy, he never felt they could do things beyond his own ability. With Henry, however, it was different. The Arsenal striker was the ultimate entertainer of his era, with technical brilliance that left defenders looking helpless as he twisted, turned, and inevitably added another goal or assist to his name week in and week out. Watch the full segment of Rio Ferdinand’s podcast below:
A World Cup nation has released a statement after one of their star players was denied entry into the United States, less than 10 days from the start of football’s showpiece event. A lot has been made during the buildup over the issues around Donald Trump’s strict entry rules, and that’s something Breel Embolo has witnessed first-hand.
The Swiss federation confirmed his ESTA travel authorisation was placed under review this week – linking back to a court ruling over a 2018 altercation, as per The Sun. Embolo, the former Basel and Monaco frontman, was convicted in 2023 of making multiple threats and handed a suspended fine.
The verdict was upheld on appeal after judges rejected his account of the incident. Swiss media reported in April that Embolo decided against taking it to the Federal Court, finalising the judgement. In a statement, the country has said: “Unfortunately, Breel Embolo is currently unable to travel to the United States with the team.
“His ESTA authorisation had been approved until this morning. However, at 10.30am, we were informed that his ESTA application had been placed under further review. We are currently in contact with the relevant authorities and expect that Breel will either join the team later today or travel tomorrow and join the squad then.”
A spokesperson told Reuters Embolo had been allowed to travel to the USA to play for Switzerland against the USMNT and Mexico last June. The Rossocrociati flew to Los Angeles and will be based in San Diego throughout the early knockings of the competition.
Liverpool will have a new man in the dugout when the 2026/27 Premier League season gets underway.
The Reds made the somewhat surprising decision to dispense with Arne Slot’s services at the end of the 2025/26 campaign, with Liverpool having finished fifth.
That came a year after Slot had guided the Reds to the Premier League title in his first season in England.
The new man to take charge at Anfield looks set to be Andoni Iraola, following the 43-year-old’s exit from Bournemouth at the end of his contract at the Vitality Stadium.
Iraola will arrive at Liverpool after a three-year spell on the south coast with Bournemouth, having spent three years prior to that at Rayo Vallecano.
His first task will be regarding the Reds’ transfer business, with a number of players linked with a move to Anfield already – namely Yan Diomande and Marc Pubill. But could Iraola return to the south coast to raid his old club for players?
GIVEMESPORT takes a look at the Burnemouth stars that could follow Iraola to the north west.
Wide forwards are a top priority for Liverpool
With Mohamed Salah leaving the club after agreeing to terminate his contract a year early and with question marks over the futures of the likes of Federico Chiesa and Cody Gakpo, Liverpool will aim to bring in at least one wide attacking player when the summer transfer window opens.
Diomande has been heavily linked with a move from RB Leipzig, although an £87million price tag will have to be negotiated to get a deal over the line.
There may be a similar option at Bournemouth in the form of one of the 2025/26 season’s breakout stars – Rayan.
The Cherries signed the teenager from Vasco da Gama on a five-and-a-half year deal in the January transfer window and he notched an impressive five goals and two assists in 15 Premier League appearances.
A deal for him will not be easy either though. According to the Athletic, Rayan has a release clause in his contract that will kick in from the January transfer window onwards for £130million. However, it is not applicable this summer, meaning they may have to pay even more than that figure if they want to get a deal done.
Liverpool will look at midfield options
The Reds will be looking at midfielders in the summer transfer window, too. Curtis Jones looks set to leave the club, with Inter Milan interested in signing him, while Harvey Elliott does not appear to have a future at the club, following a disastrous loan spell with Aston Villa.
Alexis Mac Allister is another who could leave this summer, which would leave Liverpool light in the centre of the pitch.
Alex Scott is a player that has attracted plenty of interest from some of the biggest clubs in the Premier League and Liverpool could make a move for him if he does not sign a new contract at the Vitality Stadium.
Bournemouth are keen to tie the 22-year-old down to a new deal, but if talks stall there will be no end of suitors waiting around to negotiate a move.
Liverpool could look at the full-back area
The links with Atletico Madrid’s Marc Pubill point to Liverpool wanting to strengthen in the full-back department.
Andy Robertson is leaving on a free transfer, following the expiration of his contract, but Kostas Tsimikas will return from his loan at Roma to fight for the left-back spot with Milos Kerkez.
On the right, however, there is a gap for a signing, hence the move for Pubill. Alex Jimenez is another player signed by Iraola who impressed in his first season on the south coast.
He was, however, suspended by Bournemouth towards the end of the season pending an investigation into his social media activity, which could hamstring any potential move to Liverpool.
In recent years, boxing has been taken over by the craze of YouTubers putting their gloves on and stepping into the ring.
The trend began back in 2018 when Joe Weller and KSI decided to settle their differences by way of an amateur boxing match. KSI would be victorious that night, beating Weller one minute and 37 seconds into the third round by technical knockout. The Nightmare would then call out Jake and Logan Paul, the latter of whom he would go on to fight on two separate occasions, winning in their professional bout via split decision.
The YouTuber boxers haven’t just fought amongst themselves, though, they have now fought professional boxers, which was not expected when it was first pioneered.
KSI has taken on Tommy Fury, the half-brother of former heavyweight champion, Tyson Fury, and would go on to lose, though, he did knock out the Mexican professional boxer, Luis Alcaraz Pineda.
Logan Paul has taken on Floyd Mayweather, who has won 15 major world championships across five weight classes, but it is his brother, Jake, who has drawn more attention in the ring.
Jake Paul’s Boxing Career
He also lost to Tommy Fury, but would then win six successive fights, with one of those victories coming via unanimous decision against Mike Tyson, a former world heavyweight champion who is regarded as one of the greatest heavyweight boxers of all time and one of the most intimidating men in the sport’s history.
But Paul’s run would not continue forever. He was eventually felled by the former two-time unified heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua, though, the Brit took six rounds to knock him out. He had dropped the American four times, but Paul employed a defensive strategy, backing away from his opponent to avoid his blows and prolong the fight.
Joshua had been required to make weight of 245 pounds (111kg) for the first time in his professional career, with Paul usually fighting as a cruiserweight.
The Brit landed 48 of his 146 punches, while Paul landed just 16 of his 56 shots.
There are now rumours that Paul may hang up his boxing gloves and step away from the sport, with the 29-year-old doubting whether he will return to the ring.
Anthony Joshua’s Reaction to Possibly Ending Jake Paul’s Career
Joshua had a particularly cold reaction when asked to comment on the prospect of the American’s departure, seemingly uncaring that he may not fight again.
He said: “That’s what was asked of me when I took the fight and I think I delivered it.”
The 36-year-old undoubtedly showed his power. Standing at six-foot-six, he towers over Paul despite the American standing at an impressive six-foot-one. Paul had weighed around 53lbs (24kg) less than Joshua in their respective fights prior to their clash and was severely outclassed in boxing ability.
But the real reason why Paul has expressed doubts is due to the sheer damage Joshua inflicted on him. The Brit’s punch broke his jaw in two places, requiring surgery where two titanium plates were fitted into his mouth and some teeth needed to be removed. As a result of his injuries, Paul was unable to eat solid food for at least a week.
YouTube sensation Jake Paul has taken to social media to post a picture of the X-ray of his broken jaw.
When speaking to Ariel Helwani in May 2026, Paul claimed that his boxing career was ‘most definitely’ in doubt due to the state of his jaw, though, he expected to be medically cleared for sparring in two-to-three months, suggesting he is unwilling to leave the boxing world at this stage.
Joshua’s lack of sympathy will be resounding in Paul’s mind. He’ll be keen to show that this setback hasn’t fazed him and that he can still pack a mean blow. It remains to be seen whether he’ll be stepping into the ring again, but one thing’s for sure, he’ll be out for vengeance.
