Owen Hargreaves - A tribute to the unluckiest player in footballing history

GELSENKIRCHEN, GERMANY – JULY 01: Owen Hargreaves of England is pressurised by Luis Figo (L) and Tiago of Portugal during the FIFA World Cup Germany 2006 Quarter-final match between England and Portugal played at the Stadium Gelsenkirchen on July 1, 2006 in Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

Owen Hargreaves, one of the the most injury prone players in football history, is undoubtedly talented. Known to be a hard-working solid defensive midfielder who works tirelessly to keep possession, he is a player more seen in the sick bay than on the field and has seen more of the bench than the pitch for the past few years. Born to an English mother and Welsh father in Canada, he was eligible to play for England, Wales and Canada (Phew!). Though he chose to play for England, a major part of his international caps were earned while he was at Bayern Munich, and had only three caps as a Manchester United player.

During the 2006 World Cup, he was a revelation for England. After a refreshing performance in the World Cup, Sir Alex Ferguson wanted his services and thus started another Sir Alex Ferguson transfer saga. After much speculation, Hargreaves finally signed for the Red Devils for a fee of 17 million Pounds on 31 May 2007. Sir Alex had finally captured his supposed replacement for Roy Keane and Hargreaves was presented the opportunity to play alongside his English teammates.

He started his first Premier League match in a 1-0 defeat to Manchester City – the third game of the season. He scored his first goal for United from a free-kick on the edge of the penalty box. He scored his second with another brilliantly executed free-kick versus Arsenal, who thought Ronaldo would be the one to test then Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann. He would go on to win the EPL and UEFA Champions League in his first season with United.

LONDON – SEPTEMBER 21: Owen Hargreaves of Manchester United takes on Ashley Cole of Chelsea during the Barclays Premier League match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Stamford Bridge on September 21, 2008 in London, England.

But while all seemed good, disaster struck. He was diagnosed with a recurring patellar tendinitis problem and he made only a few irregular appearances during the 2008-09 season. Visiting specialists in both London and Sweden yielded no results, so he went across the Atlantic to Colorado to visit prominent knee surgeon, Richard Steadman, who said that Hargreaves’ injury was the worst he had ever seen.

After months of rehab and surgery he was back on the pitch…for thirty seconds: he came off the bench against Sunderland in May 2010, his first appearance since September 2008.

The cameo seemed to give him hope but his luck continued to desert him and he missed the beginning of the season. Though he wasn’t completely fit, he was given a start against Wolverhampton, only to be taken off following a hamstring problem. He didn’t get his contract renewed over the summer, and so desperate was he for playing time he even offered to play for free! So determined to show his fitness he was that he uploaded videos of him training and jogging trying to attract potential buyers.

“He’s England’s Makelele. Like Maka he breaks the play up brilliantly.” – John Terry

This seemed to work and Hargreaves was signed by Manchester City on 30 August 2011 on a one-year deal. The Citizens were looking for a replacement for Patrick Vieira who had retired that summer, and a stand-in player for Yaya Toure who wasn’t going to be present during the Africa Cup of Nations. Hargreaves seemed to fit the bill perfectly.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 21: Mario Balotelli, Wayne Bridge, Owen Hargreaves, Nedum Onuoha and Pablo Zabaleta of Manchester City look on before the Carling Cup Third Round match between Manchester City and Birmingham City at the Etihad Stadium on September 21, 2011 in Manchester, England.

He made his debut for the Citizens against Birmingham City in the League Cup and even scored in the 17^th minute. But this joy was to be short-lived as he made only four appearances the whole season. His contract was not renewed, although he was seen celebrating City’s first EPL triumph in 44 years. However, he wasn’t eligible for a winner’s medal, having only made a lone Premier League appearance.

He is currently a free agent and though he seemed to be on the verge of joining Lille, the deal fell through at the last moment. He last seen training with QPR but isn’t on their books.

A deadly player when in form (and injury-free), he is a gritty defensive midfielder and only the second English player to have won the Champions League with a non-English club. Now that’s something! He is athletic and disciplined and will always be considered the player who was so near yet so far.