'It bloody hurts' - Owen opens up on heartbreak over Liverpool relationship

Owen joined Liverpool aged just 12 and went on to break into the first team in 1997 before soon becoming a regular in the England squad.

The 44-year-old, who win six major honours in Merseyside, remains the club's seventh-highest scorer having fired in an impressive 158 goals in 297 games for the Reds.

Owen's exploits on Merseyside saw him scoop the Ballon d'Or in 2001 - the last Englishman to lift the coveted award.

He left the club in 2004 for the bright lights of Real Madrid for a fee of £8million which also saw Antonio Nunez move in the opposite direction.

Owen returned to the Premier League 12 months later to join Newcastle, but it was his next destination that caused uproar among Liverpool fans.

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A free agent at the time, Owen penned a contract with Liverpool's bitter rivals Manchester United in 2009 and went on to lift the Premier League title under Sir Alex Ferguson in 2011.

His relationship with Liverpool has since soured beyond repair as a result, with Owen admitting it is painful for him every time he returns to the club.

"I don't feel as though I'm welcomed or loved and it bloody hurts, so I prefer to avoid it," Owen told The Athletic.

He also admitted that his heart still 'busts with pride' every time he approaches Anfield.

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Owen also declared that his plan ultimately never came to fruition with his idea being to experience Madrid for a season or two before returning to Anfield - much like the trodden path of Ian Rush after his stint at Juventus in the 1980s.

But Owen quickly found that his options had been swiftly snatched away from him, especially when Newcastle came calling with a hefty bid.

"Real Madrid is a glamour club, but I never had any thoughts or dreams about playing for them," he explained.

"When I got wind of their interest, I had mixed emotions. There was pride that a club like that was interested in me. There was an intrigue, I guess.

"I tossed and turned for nearly a week from the moment I heard about the interest and decided to go.

"I spoke to the manager (Rafa Benitez) and I spoke to Rick Parry (chief executive). It was like, 'Let's agree I'll do a year or two then I'll come back.'

"Subconsciously, that was what I needed, reassurance. I didn't really want to leave — Liverpool was my club. But I also wondered whether I'd end up regretting it if I didn't try it."

After leaving St James' Park in 2009, Owen was handed two reputable options as he bid to get his career back on track after a succession of injuries.

Aside from Manchester United's interest, the ex-England international held talks with Liverpool's city rivals Everton.

As a former Red, Owen was tasked with either retiring or choosing the lesser of both evils, knowing that his Anfield reputation would be in tatters no matter which option he took.

Recalling the move to Old Trafford, Owen explained that the lure of trophies and working under Ferguson was too difficult to turn down.

"Two days after returning from a meeting with Everton manager David Moyes, I was just having a quiet day at home when Nicky Butt's name appeared on my phone," Owen said previously.

"'Be prepared, Sir Alex is going to give you a call,' he said. 'OK,' I replied. 'Yeah. I think he wants to sign you,' Nicky told me.

"I couldn't believe it. I legged it to the lounge and told Louise. My head was spinning at the thought of a chance to be at a club where winning trophies was the norm.

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"Big games, Champions League, 75,000 fans for every game — we were both buzzing.

"For the next hour I literally sat in my hall staring at my phone then, all of a sudden, it rang. It was a private number. I don't often answer those, but this time was an exception.

"I let it ring for five or six seconds before answering. It was him. After a few pleasantries, Sir Alex invited me to his house the next day.

"I hardly slept. Conscious of making a good first impression, I chose my clothes carefully and drove there early, parked in some supermarket car park half a mile from his house and sat there fifteen minutes before the appointed time.

"Arriving ten minutes early was the target. I was desperate to impress him in every way. I drove to his house and pressed the buzzer.

"Obviously I knew him given our shared interest and connections in horse racing, so we probably spent more time talking about racing than football in that first meeting.

"Strangely, I don't think he ever directly said that he wanted to sign me. It was just assumed on both sides.

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"I left knowing that I was probably about to become a Manchester United player. Tony Stephens, my agent, hadn't even spoken to David Gill."

Owen went on to score 17 goals in 52 games for Manchester United, winning the Premier League title and League Cup during his three-year spell.