Everton in the media

[TheRam]

Lads, we have our country back.

[The Doc]

Such modesty (top comment).

[TheRam]

Such modesty (top comment).

He makes a decent argument to be fair and Owen was a phenomenon at the same age, but he ignores that rooney played in a number of different positions and was rotated quite a bit in a very poor team.

Rooney obviously had a lot more to his game at that age than goals.

Also, Owen brings up the balon dor, but I’am pretty sure when he won it it was only for European players, so you had all the great South Americans at the time not eligible. Am I misremembering this?

[Audrey Horne]

[NickNack]

As a goalscorer it’d have to be Owen. As an all round footballer Rooney is on another level imo

[74Blue]

Michael Owen was just pure pace, whereas Rooney at 16 was able to outmuscle grown men and use his strength to beat defenders. As soon as Owen's pace went, he was a shadow of the player that he had been. Rooney was a level above in terms of natural ability and physicality.
Both were great players and Owen was a great finisher, but I know which one centre halves would relish playing against, and it wasn't Rooney. Owen was quick, but flick a toe out and he was on the deck. Rooney could bully you right back.

[kramer]

Well done, he’s 13.

[kramer]

“In our opening 7 seasons, Wazza didn’t outscore me once…”

19 year old Rooney was nutmegging Zidane at Euro 2004, he was on a different planet. Was an all-action monster before SAF sanitized him.

One thing I’ll say about Michael Owen is that he’s definitely the sort of guy that cares if you think he was the better player at 17.

[AjaxAndy]

Owen was absolutely amazing as a striker, scored a wide variety of goals, left foot, right foot, headers despite being small. Rapid I'm a way very few footballers are.

Early part of his career he was genuinely incredible.

Rooney on the other hand was a different beast all together, whereas Owen relied on the team around him to feed him Rooney played a different game entirely to everyone else. Never seen a player at 17 walk in to an England team and look better than everyone on the team and anyone they played against. As good as Owen was Rooney was levels above as a footballer.

I'd say on a genuine footballing ability basis alone Rooney and Messi are the greatest players of my generation as when it comes to pure genius, seeing the game differently to everyone else and playing it at their pace.

As for Owen? A really good premier league and England striker who scored for fun... Nothing more, nothing less.

[kramer]

Owen was absolutely amazing as a striker, scored a wide variety of goals, left foot, right foot, headers despite being small. Rapid I'm a way very few footballers are.

Early part of his career he was genuinely incredible.

Rooney on the other hand was a different beast all together, whereas Owen relied on the team around him to feed him Rooney played a different game entirely to everyone else. Never seen a player at 17 walk in to an England team and look better than everyone on the team and anyone they played against. As good as Owen was Rooney was levels above as a footballer.

I'd say on a genuine footballing ability basis alone Rooney and Messi are the greatest players of my generation as when it comes to pure genius, seeing the game differently to everyone else and playing it at their pace.

As for Owen? A really good premier league and England striker who scored for fun... Nothing more, nothing less.

Yeah, Rooney was truly everything your attack needs in one player.

Need a set up man for Tevez and Ronaldo? He’s world class at that.

Ronaldo and Tevez are gone and you need a 20+ goal striker? World class at that too.

All while doing the grunt work off the ball to carry the likes of Ronaldo, Berbatov, Van Persie, etc.

Would’ve been nice if he had 2-3 more seasons of taking on everyone to see what individual heights he could’ve hit though.

[Matt1878]

Well done, he’s 13.

Yeah let Big Nev have the casting vote.

Always thought Owen was a poor man's Fowler and a complete Bellend to boot.

[TheRam]

Anyone remember that show back in the day with a young lad playing football who’d speak to his Michael Owen poster then Michael Owen would come out of the poster to give the young lad a motivational speech?

[Mouse]

And at 17 you were an arrogant, self-centred cunt and nothing much has changed. Rooney grew up.

[OldEnglandToffee]

who is best at throwing apple cores into the bin though. Would love to see Owen binned off, really takes having no charisma to the next level. Sadly though, like a lot of pundits, he gets people watching and talking because hes such a dick. Car crash TV like Richard Madely, Jeremy Clarkson or Piers Morgan.

[Toddacelli]

Finchy from The Office vibes.

“I can name you ten things I could beat you at!”