Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen has incredibly claimed that even Lionel Messi may find it difficult to do well in the current Liverpool set up, which has been coming under a lot of fire of late. The Reds have been going through a disastrous campaign and the team are ninth in the standings after 19 matches. They are struggling to even qualify for the Champions League next season.

The forward have been misfiring greatly and Jurgen Klopp is coming under pressure for the first time since coming to the club a few years ago.

According to a report by Spanish publication SPORT, discussions between Manchester United and Barcelona are intensifying for several players. The latest meeting is focused on two unwanted right-backs, with Barcelona proposing a like-for-like swap deal involving Sergino Dests and Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka was a hot property when he joined Manchester United from Crystal Palace over three years ago after a solid 2018/19 campaign with the Eagles. But the 24-year-old has blown hot and cold during his stint with Manchester United, as he was top-notch in his debut season with the Red Devils before producing sub-par displays in the last couple of campaigns.

These should have been his peak years, and instead he has spent them constantly shifting and readapting, isolated by a lack of world-class coaching. “You’re running too much,” Louis van Gaal told Marcus Rashford. It was half-time in Manchester United’s Europa League game against Midtjylland, and one of the world’s most celebrated coaches was trying to impart a few words of wisdom to the 18-year-old striker making his first-team debut.

“Stay between the width of the six-yard box,” he assured Rashford, “and you’ll score”. In the second half, Rashford took van Gaal’s advice on board. He was rewarded with two close-range goals, United won 5-1 and van Gaal had seen enough to hand Rashford a Premier League debut against Arsenal that weekend.

Michael Owen was a fantastic footballer in his pomp. While the Englishman’s punditry in the present day is often questionable, it must not be forgotten just how good of a player he was. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Owen was one of the most feared strikers in world football.

As a youngster at Liverpool, he had defenders quivering in fear with his pace and clinical finishing. Owen scored 157 goals in 296 games for the Reds and even scooped the coveted Ballon d’Or award in 2001 while on the team’s payroll.

The 42-year-old also thrived on the international stage, bagging 40 goals in 89 appearances for England – including a memorable hat-trick against Germany in a World Cup qualifier. Yeah, Owen’s playing career was pretty darn good, especially when you remember he enjoyed a successful year at Real Madrid too.

Michael Owen is adamant that Merseyside giants Liverpool are still the best team in Europe despite their defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League final on Saturday.

Speaking after the game on BT Sports, Michael Owen stated that Real Madrid are not the best team in Europe despite winning the Champions League.

Rio Ferdinand didn't agree with ex-Manchester United teammate Owen as he said Real Madrid showed they are the best team by beating the top three teams in the Premier League. Real Madrid sealed their place in the Champions League quarterfinals after French champions Paris Saint Germain (PSG) were beaten 3-2 on aggregate after star player Karim Benzema scored a second half hat-trick. PSG were cruising to a 2-0 win on aggregate as at the second half of their second leg clash with Real Madrid before Benzema scored three times in less than twenty minutes.