Owen decides to leave Newcastle
Michael Owen wants Premier League move
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Monday, 22, Jun 2009 08:57
Newcastle United striker Michael Owen has confirmed he will be leaving St James' Park when his contract expires at the end of the month.
Owen has cited his desire to play in the Premier League as the reason why he wants to leave the Magpies, who got relegated to the Championship last month.
The 29-year-old has revealed that a number of clubs from home and abroad are interested in acquiring his services, although he admitted he would like to stay in England.
"There are plenty of clubs who would interest me, but we will see where that is, whether that's home or abroad," Owen said. "There has been a lot of interest from abroad, and quite a bit from at home as well.
"Obviously, the Premier League is where I feel I belong. I played a year out in Spain and enjoyed it at Real Madrid, but it definitely confirmed to me that I prefer the Premier League.
"So if it was to be a good English club, that would be my preference, but I have had quite a lot of interest from abroad, so I wouldn't rule that out."
Owen, who is reportedly on more than a £100,000 a week, feels it is unlikely that he would be offered a new deal by Newcastle even if he wanted to stay.
But out of the 20 Premier League clubs, only Hull manager Phil Brown has shown an interest in signing the striker. Most teams seem to be wary of Owen's history of injury problems and the fact that he only scored 10 goals for Newcastle last season.