By Liam Mackey
Former England and Liverpool striker Michael Owen has had to field constant criticism since he began his career as a BT Sports co-commentator and analyst.
Every week, critics line up on social media to mock his punditry, but Owen insists it doesn’t bother him in the slightest.
“It’s water off a duck’s back,” he insists. “It’s all there on social media. There’s a hardcore of 500 people who will criticise me no matter what. But I’ve also got 3.65 million (followers).
“In terms of getting criticised for punditry, my bosses say I’m doing great. My mum and dad, my advisor – they all say, ‘you speak a lot of sense, you give an insight’.
“So I’m not interested in 500 numpties on Twitter that give me stick.”
Owen says he has never felt inhibited in his role, despite knowing what it feels like to be on the receiving end from pundits.
“I don’t give it a second thought,” he says. “If I was a player and Alan Hansen was on ‘Match Of The Day’ saying either Michael Owen played rubbish or he’s the next big thing – that’s life, everyone’s entitled to have an opinion. Whether you did it well or badly doesn’t mean you can’t have an opinion.
“As it happened, I did it well so I’m probably in a better position to be able to talk about someone who can or can’t score a goal. Not many people would see it through the eyes of a goalscorer.
“I don’t feel I can’t criticise or say ‘that’s great’ or pick something out that perhaps the viewer can’t see and enlighten them about certain things. Me having a go or praising someone, I’ve got no issues about doing
that.”
Owen was in Dublin at an event hosted by Cadbury, Official Snack Partner to the Premier League. The 2017/18 season marked the first year of Cadbury’s three-year partnership.Read the full interview with Owen in Monday’s Irish Examiner.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
