The prospect of Hull City, who only narrowly escaped relegation themselves last term, pulling off a deal to sign a player of Michael Owen's standing is ... how can I put it ... "misguided".
Chairman Paul Duffen: "It is a very competitive environment, a lot of people want to sign Michael Owen.
"But I believe we could structure a deal with Michael that would make it very interesting for him to come and play football at club where he has the chance of starting every week and of scoring goals to get his career back on track."