Owen revealed that he could be growing increasingly discontented with life on the bench at Old Trafford.
Gerard Houllier: "He has always been in my thoughts.
"I like him (Owen), as a player and a man.
"I went to Liverpool on September 4 for Jamie Carragher's testimonial, and I saw Michael play a half an hour of football.
"He still has the legs for it."
Michael Owen: "You can only do your best and prepare and train well, so that you are ready when the manager calls on you.
"After that, it's up to the manager who he chooses.
"It sounds easy, but probably the most difficult thing is not playing for a couple of weeks and then all of a sudden getting called up and being mentally and physically right to perform well.
"At the end of the season, I'll look and think, 'Was I happy with the amount of games I was available for?', 'Did I score enough goals in the games when I played?' and 'Did I play well enough in those games?'
"You look at highlights of the season, did we win anything, things like that. But I wouldn't put any goal or appearance totals out there because, at a club like this, you never know when the manager is going to use you."