Liverpool legend-turned-pundit Michael Owen believes Rafael Benitez may regret offloading the likes of Dwight Gayle and Aleksandar Mitrovic during last summer’s transfer window. The Magpies had a genuine concern with their goalscoring last campaign and this saw them act upon the cause this term with an overhaul of their striking department.

Salomon Rondon and Yoshinori Muto were recruited to reinforce the attack front with the former arriving on a swap-loan agreement including Gayle but the pair have since struggled to live up to their expectations. Speaking on BBC 5 Live Sport, Owen acknowledged that his former side are not playing well and they may end up regretting the decision to let go of Gayle and Mitrovic, who have impressed for West Bromwich Albion and Fulham respectively this term.

Liverpool legend-turned-pundit Michael Owen has admitted that he is still disappointed by the fact that he could not return to the Reds during the backend of his playing career. The former England international made a name for himself with the Reds between 1996 and 2004 where he contributed 158 goals across all competitions.

Speaking to The Football Ramble podcast, Owen stressed that he has no regrets for choosing to end his Reds stint for a move to Real Madrid but there remains the sense of disappointment of having failed to make an Anfield comeback, he said: “I was hoping I could always go back to Liverpool. That was the hope. But if I had said no [to Real Madrid] I just thought that would be an opportunity or an experience missed. I have no regrets and I definitely would have done the same again, it just so happened I couldn’t go back to my club. It never happened, I could never get back to what I consider my club and for that I am disappointed.”

Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge has admitted that he is surprised with the output provided by Naby Keita on the playing field. The Guinea international joined the Reds from RB Leipzig for a reported fee of around £52.7m this summer and he has since made a good impression in the pre-season games.

Speaking to Liverpool’s official website, Sturridge said that he has been impressed with the way Keita has coped since making the switch to Merseyside, he said: “I love that guy. I'm surprised how good he is actually, if I'm honest. I knew he was good but I don't watch German football too often. I haven't seen a midfielder like him for a while, he is something different. It's crazy. The things he can do with the ball – he can defend, he can pass, he can dribble, he is fast, he is strong. We share some good times and have a lot of laughs together. I like him a lot, he's a good guy.”

Liverpool legend-turned-pundit Michael Owen has praised Mohamed Salah for an excellent debut season with the Reds and believes the Egyptian will stay with Liverpool for the long-term. In a report covered by The Independent, he said: “He’s just had a quite brilliant season, an amazing season. He’s obviously been an outstanding signing. Even though he cost £37m, you would still say he has been one of the best pieces of business of all time. You could add £100m plus onto his value. He’s just been a staggering return on investment. The best thing about it is – in my humble opinion – is that he is at his end game as well. There is no point looking at figures or anything else, I think he is at Liverpool for the long-term.”

Salah has notched 44 goals over the course of the 2017/18 campaign and this has recently seen him awarded with the PFA and FWA Player of the Year awards on top of the Premier League Golden Boot. As such, there has been plenty of interest from Los Blancos ahead of the summer but the Egyptian has stressed that he has no plans of leaving the Merseyside club.

Liverpool legend-turned-pundit Michael Owen believes Brazil are the front-runners for the summer World Cup with a better-balanced squad than some of their competitors. The Selecao suffered a shocking 7-1 semi-final defeat to Germany during the previous edition of the World Cup but Owen expects them to come stronger this time around with a great array of attacking talents at their disposal.

Speaking to The Daily Mail, he said: “They’ve two brilliant goalkeepers, they’ve got defenders, and they have that array of attacking talent with Neymar, Gabriel Jesus and Philippe Coutinho. France obviously have a lot of good players but I’m a bit sceptical about them in tournaments. Spain and Germany I also like, but Brazil would be my idea of the strongest team.”