The back-to-fitness striker will not be relishing a season of mediocrity at Newcastle so it's a question of which of the big four has the biggest cheque book. At the moment it is all speculation by the media linking him to a move to Manchester United, but a fully-fit Michael Owen would be a target for all the top clubs. The problem is, has he left his injury-plagued history behind him? Will any club be willing to invest the money and take the chance that they can rely on him to be able to play the majority of games in a season? It is a huge risk. Even if he plays and stays injury free from now until the end of the season, because of his history, would many people be surprised if he broke down again at the start of next season? If he is bought by one of the top four, that club will be taking a huge gamble, but if he has overcome his injuries and can stay fit then the club that signs him will have one of the most prolific and proven strikers in the history of the Premiership. Its not hard to believe the media stories that Sir ,Alex Ferguson is interested in the former Liverpool player, and an in-form, injury-free Owen would once again become one of the top strikers in the league. Chelsea are always after players and sometimes it's about not letting the competition sign them. Owen paired with Didier Drogba would be an attacking force most teams would fear. Arsenal are the team most in need of a proven goal getter, so I suspect they will be more interested in his medical reports than anyone. They need someone apart from Thierry Henry to spearhead their attack; everything else at the club is good but they just cannot put the ball in the net. The pressure is on Arsene Wenger for results. The last of the four is Liverpool, by far the most complicated transfer destination for Owen. Liverpool also need a prolific striker; as much as I rate Dirk Kuyt and as hard-working as he is, he seems to better suited to setting up play and providing chances for other players than an all-out goal getter. A 20-plus-a-season Premiership scorer is what we need. Owen would fit that bill perfectly but there is a little bit of baggage to this grand reunion. Owen's departure from Anfield left a bitter taste in the mouths of many Liverpool fans. His reluctance to sign a new contract meant Liverpool were held to ransom and forced to sell him for only £8m to Real Madrid with only months left on his contract. It was not all his fault; Liverpool should have sealed the deal earlier in the year or sold him in time for Rafa Benitez to replace him, but still we were left starting the season one striker short . It seemed like justice when we won the Champions League without him while he spent most of the season on the bench at the Bernabeu. He eventually forced his way into the team and actually had the highest goals-per-minutes-played ratio in La Liga. He also came through the season nearly injury free from playing fewer games, so maybe Benitez`s rotation system would help with his injury problems. All this would be a tough on Newcastle United, who paid £16m for a man who has only played 11 games so far for them. But Owen will want to play Champions League football and there very little indication that he will get it on Tyneside. Owen has never endeared himself to the Anfield crowd in the way that Robbie Fowler, Steven Gerrard or Jamie Carragher have done, but he has produced some great displays and created wonderful memories; the FA Cup victory over Arsenal in 2001 will always be the Michael Owen final. Liverpool now have other options - Samuel Eto`o and David Villa are names that keep cropping up. They are the best that Europe have to offer right now, but it normally takes a season or two for these players to adjust to the Premiership. With Owen, this is not a problem - he was educated in our league and knows what it takes to succeed. Owen`s first choice would be a move back to Anfield, but sadly for him I think one of the other three teams are going to be more interested in him. Liverpool now have the resources they need to at last make a proper challenge for the title and after so many false dawns it's just too risky bringing the little striker back home.
John Beilein is officially coming to Ann Arbor. After reports that he was offered the job came about Sunday night, Monday was reserved for widespread speculation of whether or not he would take the offer. It came out on Monday that he did in fact accept the job offer, but it still wasn't official yet. Now, on Tuesday, the news is official. Beilein is Michigan's new basketball coach and will be introduced at a press conference tomorrow.
MGoBlue.com, Michigan's official athletic website, has a press release regarding the news.
University of Michigan director of athletics Bill Martin announced Tuesday (April 3) that John Beilein has signed a multi-year contract to coach the University of Michigan men's basketball team. Beilein becomes the 16th coach in the program's 90-year history.
"I am very pleased to announce John Beilein as our new head coach for the men's basketball program," said Martin. "He is an individual with a great knowledge of the game. He is a proven winner. He is an extraordinary teacher of the game. He is a great basketball coach. We welcome John and his family to Michigan."
"This is an exciting opportunity for me and my family to join the University of Michigan basketball program," said Beilein. "I look forward to the challenges that lie ahead and getting to know the University and Ann Arbor community. I am anxious to meet the team, visit with the recruits and all the Wolverine basketball alumni and fans. This is a great opportunity to build Michigan as one of the elite programs in he country."
With the contract details, the Ann Arbor News has information that is a little surprising as far as what happened to the large buyout that came with hiring Beilein.
New Michigan basketball coach John Beilein will be paid $1.3 million per season, as part of a six-year contract he signed with the university today, according to a source with direct knowledge of the deal.
The salary has a $200,000 annual base, with $1.1 million in other compensation from various sources, including speaking engagements and television and radio deals. There are a series of bonuses for advancing to the NCAA Tournament, including $150,000 for winning the national championship.
The contract doesn't include any language about Beilein's $2.5 million buyout with West Virginia and the source said Michigan won't be responsible for the sum.
I like the fact that Bill Martin opened the checkbooks to get Beilein. $1.3 million per year is really the perfect amount for Michigan to pay; it's not too high or too low. As far as why the buyout disappeared, speculation suggests that a donor stepped in and made a contribution to West Virginia to get rid of the said buyout. I'm already hearing the name of Bill Davidson being tossed around, but others are pointing to the direction of Stephen Ross. Ross donated $100 million to the University of Michigan in 2004, so it wouldn't shock me at all to find out that he decided to make the buyout go away by donating something to WVU.
This is a great hire in my opinion. At first I was a little skeptical when I heard Beilein mentioned as a candidate because of his recruiting and the buyout, but let's look at both right now. The buyout obviously doesn't mean anything now as Michigan didn't have to pay it. Recruiting-wise, don't expect to see the nation's top players come to Michigan as Beilein doesn't recruit on rankings but more towards finding players that fit his system. He also makes average or just good players into great ones. Who else could've turned Pittsnogle into somewhat of a household name?
In the end, I applaud Bill Martin for the way this search went. Almost everything was kept secret throughout the process and the only thing that did become public, Beilein being offered the job, worked out as he accepted the deal to become Michigan's new coach. Much more on Beilein will be posted later this week as it is a monumental step for Michigan to become a great basketball school once again.
To update the current recruiting situation, we should find out what Alex Legion, Manny Harris, and Kelvin Grady plan to do in the next week. All three will likely meet with Beilein and then make a decision. Out of the three, Alex Legion is the one with the best chance of leaving, but we'll just have to wait and see. He would be great in Beilein's offense, so hopefully that is realized by the time he makes a decision.
A press conference will be held tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. ET to introduce Beilein as the new coach. You can watch the press conference live or at any time after through Michigan All-Access (link can be found on MGoBlue press release linked above).
I said it yesterday but will say it again, welcome to Ann Arbor, Coach Beilein.
MGoBlue.com, Michigan's official athletic website, has a press release regarding the news.
University of Michigan director of athletics Bill Martin announced Tuesday (April 3) that John Beilein has signed a multi-year contract to coach the University of Michigan men's basketball team. Beilein becomes the 16th coach in the program's 90-year history.
"I am very pleased to announce John Beilein as our new head coach for the men's basketball program," said Martin. "He is an individual with a great knowledge of the game. He is a proven winner. He is an extraordinary teacher of the game. He is a great basketball coach. We welcome John and his family to Michigan."
"This is an exciting opportunity for me and my family to join the University of Michigan basketball program," said Beilein. "I look forward to the challenges that lie ahead and getting to know the University and Ann Arbor community. I am anxious to meet the team, visit with the recruits and all the Wolverine basketball alumni and fans. This is a great opportunity to build Michigan as one of the elite programs in he country."
With the contract details, the Ann Arbor News has information that is a little surprising as far as what happened to the large buyout that came with hiring Beilein.
New Michigan basketball coach John Beilein will be paid $1.3 million per season, as part of a six-year contract he signed with the university today, according to a source with direct knowledge of the deal.
The salary has a $200,000 annual base, with $1.1 million in other compensation from various sources, including speaking engagements and television and radio deals. There are a series of bonuses for advancing to the NCAA Tournament, including $150,000 for winning the national championship.
The contract doesn't include any language about Beilein's $2.5 million buyout with West Virginia and the source said Michigan won't be responsible for the sum.
I like the fact that Bill Martin opened the checkbooks to get Beilein. $1.3 million per year is really the perfect amount for Michigan to pay; it's not too high or too low. As far as why the buyout disappeared, speculation suggests that a donor stepped in and made a contribution to West Virginia to get rid of the said buyout. I'm already hearing the name of Bill Davidson being tossed around, but others are pointing to the direction of Stephen Ross. Ross donated $100 million to the University of Michigan in 2004, so it wouldn't shock me at all to find out that he decided to make the buyout go away by donating something to WVU.
This is a great hire in my opinion. At first I was a little skeptical when I heard Beilein mentioned as a candidate because of his recruiting and the buyout, but let's look at both right now. The buyout obviously doesn't mean anything now as Michigan didn't have to pay it. Recruiting-wise, don't expect to see the nation's top players come to Michigan as Beilein doesn't recruit on rankings but more towards finding players that fit his system. He also makes average or just good players into great ones. Who else could've turned Pittsnogle into somewhat of a household name?
In the end, I applaud Bill Martin for the way this search went. Almost everything was kept secret throughout the process and the only thing that did become public, Beilein being offered the job, worked out as he accepted the deal to become Michigan's new coach. Much more on Beilein will be posted later this week as it is a monumental step for Michigan to become a great basketball school once again.
To update the current recruiting situation, we should find out what Alex Legion, Manny Harris, and Kelvin Grady plan to do in the next week. All three will likely meet with Beilein and then make a decision. Out of the three, Alex Legion is the one with the best chance of leaving, but we'll just have to wait and see. He would be great in Beilein's offense, so hopefully that is realized by the time he makes a decision.
A press conference will be held tomorrow at 12:00 p.m. ET to introduce Beilein as the new coach. You can watch the press conference live or at any time after through Michigan All-Access (link can be found on MGoBlue press release linked above).
I said it yesterday but will say it again, welcome to Ann Arbor, Coach Beilein.
He may be Russia's fourth ranked player but captain Shamil Tarpischev is counting on Marat Safin to keep the champions winning streak on course in their Davis Cup quarter-final clash against France in Moscow starting on Friday. Plagued by injuries and poor form since winning his last title at the 2005 Australian Open, Safin plummeted to as low as 104th in the world rankings prior to last year's US Open but has since risen to 27th.
But Tarpischev insists that in terms of grit and determination no one can match the former world number one.
Russia, who won their second Davis Cup title in 2006 against Argentina, are overwhelming favourites as they face off against France for a third year in a row at the quarter-final stage.
At stake is a semi-final berth against either Germany or Belgium in September.
"Safin will play because he has the most motivation," said Tarpischev.
"We'll need to stay focused. They (France) have nothing to lose, while we are defending our title. And this fact puts us under tough pressure."
The Russian lineup for the indoor clay tie at the Luzhniki Arena will be bolstered by the return of world number four Nikolay Davydenko and 17th-ranked Mikhail Youzhny.
Davydenko and Youzhny both missed the holders' victory over Chile in February in which Safin and 235th-ranked Igor Andreev played key roles.
Safin's best result this year has been reaching the Las Vegas semi-finals.
And he admitted that he was looking forward to the camaraderie of the Davis Cup in which he has a 28-18 winning record.
"It's the only competition where I can still win matches," joked Safin, who nevertheless warned against complacency.
"If we already think of the semi-final we have 99 percent chance of losing."
Russia have a 4-2 record against the French - winning their past three ties including 2002 when they claimed their first Davis Cup title at the expense of the hosts in Paris.
France captain Guy Forget will be counting on world number 15 Richard Gasquet for the singles with the second tie to be decided in a lineup which includes Paul-Henri Mathieu, Michael Llodra and Arnaud Clement.
"On paper Russia are the favourites. We've lost to them twice in the past two years. Everything is in their favour," admitted Forget.
"But I'm not going over there beaten. There's always a chance to seize when you have nothing to lose."
In Ostend, Germany will be counting on in-form Tommy Haas and Florian Mayer to lead them to victory over hosts Belgium on clay.
Belgium will line out with the Rochus brothers, Olivier and Christophe, along with Kristof Vliegen and Dick Norman.
Spain will, meanwhile, be without Rafael Nadal for their tie against the United States at Winston-Salem, North Carolina, as the world number two recovers from a foot problem.
The Spanish face an uphill task to overcome Andy Roddick and James Blake in the singles and doubles specialists the Bryan twins, Bob and Mike.
Tommy Robredo, David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez make up the Spanish squad for the hardcourt tie which will decide who meets either Sweden or last year's finalists Argentina, who play on carpet indoors in Gothenburg.
The South Americans enjoyed a 5-0 whitewash against the Swedes in Buenos Aires in the opening round of last year's competition.
Fixtures
Russia v France at Moscow (indoor clay)
Belgium v Germany at Ostend, Belgium (indoor clay)
USA v Spain at Winston-Salem, North Carolina (indoor hard)
Sweden v Argentina at Gothenburg (indoor Taraflex Tennis carpet)
But Tarpischev insists that in terms of grit and determination no one can match the former world number one.
Russia, who won their second Davis Cup title in 2006 against Argentina, are overwhelming favourites as they face off against France for a third year in a row at the quarter-final stage.
At stake is a semi-final berth against either Germany or Belgium in September.
"Safin will play because he has the most motivation," said Tarpischev.
"We'll need to stay focused. They (France) have nothing to lose, while we are defending our title. And this fact puts us under tough pressure."
The Russian lineup for the indoor clay tie at the Luzhniki Arena will be bolstered by the return of world number four Nikolay Davydenko and 17th-ranked Mikhail Youzhny.
Davydenko and Youzhny both missed the holders' victory over Chile in February in which Safin and 235th-ranked Igor Andreev played key roles.
Safin's best result this year has been reaching the Las Vegas semi-finals.
And he admitted that he was looking forward to the camaraderie of the Davis Cup in which he has a 28-18 winning record.
"It's the only competition where I can still win matches," joked Safin, who nevertheless warned against complacency.
"If we already think of the semi-final we have 99 percent chance of losing."
Russia have a 4-2 record against the French - winning their past three ties including 2002 when they claimed their first Davis Cup title at the expense of the hosts in Paris.
France captain Guy Forget will be counting on world number 15 Richard Gasquet for the singles with the second tie to be decided in a lineup which includes Paul-Henri Mathieu, Michael Llodra and Arnaud Clement.
"On paper Russia are the favourites. We've lost to them twice in the past two years. Everything is in their favour," admitted Forget.
"But I'm not going over there beaten. There's always a chance to seize when you have nothing to lose."
In Ostend, Germany will be counting on in-form Tommy Haas and Florian Mayer to lead them to victory over hosts Belgium on clay.
Belgium will line out with the Rochus brothers, Olivier and Christophe, along with Kristof Vliegen and Dick Norman.
Spain will, meanwhile, be without Rafael Nadal for their tie against the United States at Winston-Salem, North Carolina, as the world number two recovers from a foot problem.
The Spanish face an uphill task to overcome Andy Roddick and James Blake in the singles and doubles specialists the Bryan twins, Bob and Mike.
Tommy Robredo, David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez make up the Spanish squad for the hardcourt tie which will decide who meets either Sweden or last year's finalists Argentina, who play on carpet indoors in Gothenburg.
The South Americans enjoyed a 5-0 whitewash against the Swedes in Buenos Aires in the opening round of last year's competition.
Fixtures
Russia v France at Moscow (indoor clay)
Belgium v Germany at Ostend, Belgium (indoor clay)
USA v Spain at Winston-Salem, North Carolina (indoor hard)
Sweden v Argentina at Gothenburg (indoor Taraflex Tennis carpet)
