Owen needs to get real

Michael Owen scored 30 goals in four years at Newcastle

Newcastle 0-0 Manchester United

After Newcastle's hard-fought 0-0 draw with Manchester United last night, Michael Owen used Twitter to tell of his disappointment at the booing he received from the Newcastle fans.

Owen seems to have a very high opinion of himself. What did he expect? The Toon Army to welcome back the man who captained the side in their relegation season? The man the club wasted £17million on and around £120,000 a week on wages? The man whose form deteriorated so rapidly he couldn't even get in the team by the end of his final season? The man whose goals cost over £500,000 a piece?

He also said "From what most of you Newcastle fans are saying you should be pleased I left the club! If I had known that I could have left sooner!"

Well Michael, the truth is most Newcastle fans are not just pleased you left the club, they are delighted and relieved.

It would have been better all round if Owen had left sooner. The club may have been able to cut their losses on him and get some money back that way.

Owen was able to walk away after relegation, straight to Manchester United, while those who were really committed to Newcastle and, above all, the fans, had to deal with the anguish of the drop and battle their way back into the Premier League.

He claims when he meets Newcastle or Liverpool fans, they all "respect" what he did for their clubs.

What on earth did he acheive at St. James' Park to earn respect?

30 goals in four years? An average of around 20 appearances a season?

Owen produced his best form for Newcastle under Kevin Keegan

The only positive thing Owen will be remembered for on Tyneside is the two goals he scored against Sunderland under Kevin Keegan.

He may not have been the only player the club spent ridiculous amounts of money on.

But he was the most high-profile, the club-record signing.

He was meant to be the player to take the club to the next level. To take over long-term from Alan Shearer.

But he was an absolute flop, possibly the worst signing in the club's history. And that's saying something from a club who have signed the likes of Albert Luque, Xisco and Marcelino in the past.

The reception he recieved on his return to St. James' Park was possibly the most angry ever given to a returning player at Newcastle, but it wasn't a surprise and it was fully justified. Owen needs to look at it from the fans' point of view before moaning about it.

He says if fans knew the facts they might have a different opinion, but unless he reveals the facts he will have no chance of ever changing their minds.

As for the game, Newcastle were fully deserving of a point for the effort and commitment they put in.

Both sides will feel they should have had a penalty but the Newcastle appeal, for a foul on Peter Lovenkrands, was the most clear-cut.

Anderson clearly caught him and referee Lee Probert was well-placed, but appeared to be distracted by Shola Ameobi, who was lying on the floor after an incident earlier in the move.

It was a case of what might have been but the Magpies should be very happy with the point.

The visitors also felt they should have had a spot-kick in stoppage time at the end of the second half, with Javier Hernandez going down under a challenge from Danny Simpson.

Simpson confronted Hernandez after he attempted to win a penalty

Simpson clearly stuck a leg out, which is an extremely dangerous thing to do in the box, but no contact appeared to be made and Hernandez went over regardless.

The Mexican may have went down because he was expecting the touch, so it may have been harsh to book him for diving. However, the referee showed great strength in turning down the appeal when it would have been an easy decision for him to give it.

Probert's decision to book Hernandez may have been as a result of Nani's dive in the first half.

Nani had been diving for much of the game, but his attempt to win a penalty in the first half was cheating in every sense of the word.

He was given a serious talking to by Probert but no booking. Players like him should be given two-game bans for incidents like this as they leave a very sour taste in the mouth. He also shows utter contempt for his fellow professionals when throwing himself to the ground.

That is why he wasn't nominated for the PFA Player of the Year award. Why should fellow players vote for someone who tries to cheat them each time they face each other?

The way Wayne Rooney reacted to many of the referee's decisions, you would think he was the captain.

Wayne Rooney was in the referee's face whenever a decision went against Manchester United

Whenever a controversial decision was made against the Red Devils, Rooney was there, in the referee's ear and gesticulating.

He will never gain any of the respect back from fans and pundits while he still reacts like a schoolboy the moment anything goes against his side. He needs to stamp this out of his game and grow up.

His side did have chances and he was guilty more than most, missing two clear chances he would normally be expected to score. Ryan Giggs also missed the best chance of the game late on when he turned a cross wide of the post on around the penalty spot, but it would be hard to say Newcastle didn't deserve a point.

They had chances too, with Joey Barton, Shola Ameobi and Stephen Ireland all having good chances, while a long-range Cheik Tiote effort was well dealt with by Edwin van der Sar.

But Peter Lovenkrands' close-range header miss summed up Newcastle's lack of cutting edge.

He was unmarked and put the ball well wide. Newcastle fans could be forgiven for thinking if that was Andy Carroll, they may have been celebrating three points rather than one.

But the fans could see how much effort was being put in and this was emphasised in the exhilarating start to the game.

Newcastle needed to stamp their authority from the start and did just that.

The best chance in the period went to Man Utd, though, with Tim Krul making a fantastic save from Javier Hernandez.

Tim Krul's early save from Javier Hernandez proved crucial

Had that gone in, it would have been an uphill battle for the hosts and the save added to the growing consensus that Krul should be Newcastle's number one goalkeeper next season.

But the start to the game, in which Newcastle forced a number of set-pieces and half-chances, was played at an unbelievably fast pace and involved the crowd immediately.

They spurred the home side on and stuck with the team throughout the game, and that was in no small part down to the start.

The return of Cheik Tiote was key in keeping the visitors relatively quiet, while Fabricio Coloccini was excellent at the back.

In truth, every Newcastle player put in a good shift and played well, and that is all that can be asked when coming up against a team like Manchester United.

Mike Williamson, Fabricio Coloccini and Cheik Tiote were key in keeping the likes of Wayne Rooney at bay

The point pushed Newcastle onto 40 points, which should be enough to see them safe.

It would take a monumental effort from those below them in the table to all reach the 40 point mark, but even if they do Newcastle will be confident of picking up some more points between now and the end of the season.

As for Man Utd, they should be quite happy with the point.

They still have to play both Arsenal and Chelsea again this season, so the title race is not over yet, but it would be a major surprise to see them throw this one away.

This was a major test for them and while they couldn't come away with three points, they will be relieved to have this game out of the way as Newcastle is never an easy place to go to.

Just ask Michael Owen.