Ray Parlour has suggested Michael Owen should have considered retiring instead of signing for Newcastle United if he knew his heart was no longer in football.
The Arsenal legend was responding to the explosive comments in Owen’s new book, which have sparked a huge reaction from football fans, especially on Tyneside, having spoken about his ill-fated spell at St James’ Park and his ten-year feud with Alan Shearer.
His comments have not gone down well with the Toon Army, with Owen also admitting he ‘regretted’ his move to Newcastle as he never wanted to join the club.
The former England striker says he was left devastated when told by Real Madrid’s president Florentino Perez that his desired move back to Liverpool was not possible, as Newcastle were willing to pay more money to sign him.
He ended up sealing a move to St James’ Park for £16.8million after just one year at the Bernabeu, but injuries limited him to 79 appearances for Newcastle and he scored only 30 goals in four years.
Reacting to Owen’s revelations, his former Magpies manager Sam Allardyce told talkSPORT the striker ‘never looked comfortable’ at the club, while the 2001 Ballon d’Or winner has previously admitted he hated the final years of his career and couldn’t wait to retire.
And Parlour believes he would have been better off doing that, rather than take Newcastle’s money.
Speaking on Wednesday’s Sports Breakfast, Ray said: “To say you didn’t really want to be at the club… why did you sign for them then?
“You’ve got to want to play for a club. You’ve got to put your heart into it.
“No one wants to leave a massive club like he was at – Liverpool and Real Madrid – but you’ve got embrace the situation – play for the shirt, play for your team-mates, play for yourself and enjoy it.
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“When I signed for Middlesbrough I made sure I moved up there. You can’t keep coming backwards and forwards and I loved it, it was fantastic to live up there for a couple of years; great people, nice surroundings, it was great.
“Plus, whether Newcastle was the last option for Michael or not, £120,000-a-week is not a bad contract to have is it. That was a huge contract in those days.
“But it’s not all about money, you’ve got to perform week-in week-out, which he probably didn’t do in a Newcastle shirt.”
Parlour revealed to talkSPORT he had an offer to join Southend United in 2007 when he left Hull, but turned the club – who had just been relegated from the Championship – down to hang up his boots.
The midfielder said he could have prolonged his career with the Essex outfit, but knew he wouldn’t have done it for the right reasons.
And he says Owen perhaps should have made a similar decision.
He added: “When I retired, I had a chance to go to Southend United in League One, but would my heart have been in it? I don’t think it would have been. It would have been taking money for the sake of it, and you probably weren’t going to see my full capacity and grit every single week.
“So I think Michael has probably looked at it and said, I don’t really want to go there but it’s a good contract, so let’s just go and see how it goes.
“But that’s not the right way to look at going into a football club, because you’re never going to do well.”
Sam Allardyce on Michael Owen's comments that he did not want to join Newcastle
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