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Owen: Lets Talk!!!
By Tyne-Talk April 20 2008
Newcastle United striker Michael Owen has hinted that he would like new contract talks to begin. Over the last few weeks manager Kevin Keegan has praised his top goalscorer and pledged to keep him at the club. Owen who signed from Read Madrid in 2005 under the management of Graeme Souness confirmed he had had a meeting with Keegan but there was nothing on the table at present.

Owen also slammed the critics who plagued the media with stories as to how he was using Newcastle as a stepping stone back into Premier League football and has said he hopes he has proved them wrong by showing that he is fully committed to the club.

He told The News Of The World:

"At the moment there is nothing on the table for me to consider so it's hard for me to make a statement about my future.  Discussions have not even started yet,

But the manager called me into his office a week ago and told me about his plans for the future.  He discussed the kind of players he wants to bring in and what ambitions he has for Newcastle United.

I was really enthused by what he had to say.  Everyone connected with the club is looking forward to next season with great anticipation.

You could not have said that earlier in the year when we went nine games without a win.  Everyone was looking over their shoulders and fearing the worst.

But we have managed to turn things around and we can now look to a top-half finish - and in the long term, achieving some real success.

These last few weeks have given me a real appreciation of what Newcastle is all about.  It has been my best spell since I arrived.  This is why I signed for the club in the first place," he continued.

It didn't matter how many times I denied Newcastle was a stopover for me.  People didn't want to believe me.  The only way I could convince them was by doing it on the pitch and unfortunately my injuries got in the way.

I hope the last few weeks have proved to people how committed I have been.  I only wish it had been over a period of 30 to 40 games rather than half a dozen - but there is a lot more to come."

The good news is backed by Chairman Chris Mort who said the following in a recent interview:

"I would hope so. I think all the players are enjoying playing under Kevin, you can see that in the way they play and I would imagine Michael's in that camp as well; he seems to be enjoying his game.

He's got his contract this year and next year but it obviously makes sense to sit down with Michael and secure him for the long-term if we can.

The first things we do is, again not talking about any players in particular, sit down with the manager and decide what the manager wants to do because he is the one who has to make the end decision on these things but I know that Kevin is very fond of Michael so I would hope we can sit down and do something.

We are no different to any other big club in the Premier League; we'll sit down with the manager at the end of the season."

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