He won soccer’s Ballon d’Or. Now Michael Owen wants to conquer the racing world

6 days ago 5

English soccer great Michael Owen does not hesitate when you ask him to nominate the best he played with. Ever.

“Zinedine Zidane,” Owen replies.

“I played with the Brazilian Ronaldo, and his first four or five years on the professional scene were something the world had ever seen – and I include Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo in that.

“But Zidane was like watching a ballerina [with his footwork]. He was an absolute freak.”

What about the toughest player?

“Stephen Gerrard,” Owen says.

Michael Owen (right) and trainer Hugo Palmer will have around 150 horses in work at Manor House Stables next year.

Funniest teammate?

“Jamie Carragher was my roommate, I would have said him, then Wayne Rooney came along – he was a character who everyone loved playing with; Wayne had a great sense of humour,” Owen said.

Now 45, Owen is the former Ballon d’Or winner who started his career with Premier League giants Liverpool, spent time at Real Madrid, collected two Golden Boots, scored 40 goals for England and is now a regular TV pundit.

He is reportedly worth north of $100m, says he has no interest watching movies and has never drank tea or coffee. But when asked what brings him the most joy in life, aside from family, Owen says it is hard to go past horse racing.

The joy of racing runs through the veins of Michael Owen.

And on Saturday, at Royal Randwick, Owen will watch Seagulls Eleven, a gelding prepared at his Manor House Stables in the north of England, try and pinch the $10m Golden Eagle.

Fellow English horse Lake Forest won the feature last year, for Brighton & Hove Albion owner Tony Bloom.

Owen was in Dubai for a soccer clinic when he spoke to this masthead about what it meant to have Seagulls Eleven race in Sydney.

Sure, the horse is co-owned by several Brighton & Hove Albion players, including Owen’s good friend James Milner – and will even carry the club’s blue and white colours – but Owen locks eyes on Seagulls Eleven every day and takes pride knowing he is prepared out of his stables by the man he employs as his full-time trainer, Hugo Palmer.

Liverpool legend Michael Owen has an interest in a runner in Saturday’s Golden Eagle.

Owen’s love for horses began when he was around 10. His dad, Terry, loved watching the races at home on the TV, and having a punt. By the time Owen turned 18, he was already a Premier League star for Liverpool and had enough money to buy a horse.

“I actually had enough to buy two, including a horse called Etienne Lady, and she was named after Saint-Etienne, where I scored a famous goal for England against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup,” he said.

Owen often talked horses with his teammates, especially Steve McManaman and Robbie Fowler when at Liverpool. Soccer legends they may have been, but McManaman and Fowler were lousy tipsters, Owen revealed.

When he signed with Manchester United later in his career, Owen was convinced manager Sir Alex Ferguson was more interested in his knowledge of thoroughbreds than anything he could do in front of goals.

‘Some days I wonder if Sir Alex signed me for my tips.’

Michael Owen on his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson

The day before every United game, Ferguson would address players individually to let them know if they would be dropped or called up to start the following day.

“This one day Sir Alex called me over after training and said, ‘Michael, can I have a word?’” Owen said.

“I was like, ‘fantastic, brilliant, I’m going to be starting the next day’.

“Sir Alex put his arm around me and said, ‘Michael, you have two runners from your stable racing today, I just want to know if either of them can win’.

Seagulls Eleven is prepared at Michael Owen’s stables and owned by several Brighton players.

“Some days I wonder if Sir Alex signed me for my tips rather than trying to score goals.”

The best horse Owen owned was 2013 Melbourne Cup runner Brown Panther, which looked the goods early then tailed off behind winner Fiorente.

He is an avid follower of Australian racing, says he is in awe of the prizemoney being offered and admires the way the industry caters for old and new owners.

Palmer linked with Owen about four years ago, and revealed this week he had spent a couple of years working with Gai Waterhouse when the stable had the likes of Manhattan Rain and More Joyous at the top of their game.

Michael Owen raises the trophy after winning the Dubai Gold Cup with Brown Panther in 2015.

Owen makes no apologies for wanting to run the most successful racing operation in England, and likens the path they are taking to the footballing rise of Brighton.

“We started Manor House about 22 or 23 years ago with 15 horses, including 12 that I owned,” Owen said. “We now have about 135, and next year we hope to have 150

“We win races at big festivals, we’ve won group races, but we haven’t mixed it with the very, very elite until now.

“Brighton is the template for Manor House stables. Twenty years ago, Brighton were about four divisions below, but they’re now in the Premier League. We’re in the Premier League now. We’re one of the most upwardly mobile yards in the country, and we have dreams, visions and aspirations of being at the top.

“I’m not scared to say that. I know I can’t pull oil out of the ground, and I don’t own a state, so I just can’t buy the best horses.

“The only way I can get good horses is through hard work, finding owners, giving owners the best time, having the best trainer, and getting results the others can’t.

“If dedication, hard work and passion paves the way, we’ll be there [at the top] soon.”

Owen visited Sydney for the first time earlier this year for a speaking engagement. He does not follow the A-League, but remains a big fan of Ange Postecoglou, who lasted just 39 days in the top job at Nottingham Forest before being shown the door.

“I like Ange, the country likes him, he wears his heart on his sleeve,” Owen said.

Owen would love to target more Australian races with the right horses. The Golden Eagle will also feature a Japanese runner, Panja Tower.

Racing is a global game. Owen will forever remain a global name. Expect to find him sitting in front of a screen somewhere in Dubai – sans tea or coffee – around 9.45am on Saturday, cheering on Seagulls Eleven.