How my football career ended after winning Ballon d’Or – Michael Owen

Former England striker, Michael Owen, has narrated how his football career ended after he won the Ballon d’Or at the age of 21.

Twenty years ago, Owen, then 21, won the most prestigious individual award beating off competition from Raul Gonzalez and Oliver Kahn in the voting.

He won the award after helping Liverpool to a UEFA Cup, FA Cup and League Cup treble.

Owen, who is the last Englishman to have won the Ballon d’Or, spoke to Daily Mail on the 20th anniversary of him winning the award.

The former England international said he was unaware of the injury issues that lay ahead and did not think it would be the only time he would win the Ballon d’Or.

“At 21? Oh, I definitely thought I could win another Ballon d’Or,” Owen told the Daily Mail.

“I still didn’t know injuries would compromise me so much.

“It hurts my pride when I think people remember me from my mid-20s onwards.

“I had ‘Owen’ on my back, but I wasn’t ‘Michael Owen’.

“I was hanging on for dear life. I had the mentality of one of the best players in the world, but my body was failing me. It was torture.

“From 10 to 17, I believe there wasn’t anyone in the world as good.”