Owen "In My Pocket" Says Vignal

Last updated : 30 September 2005 By Footy Mad - Editor

Former Liverpool defender, Gregory Vignal, is conning no-one when says he knows how to stop his old Anfield colleague, Michael Owen, when Newcastle United take on Portsmouth at Fratton Park on Saturday.

The French full-back knows what level he has to be at to stop Owen: "It was great training with Michael every day at Liverpool because he is a great player. In my first season there he won the Ballon d'or for being the European Footballer of the Year. That shows how good he is.

"When you train with a player like Michael it is fantastic, whether he is on your side or not. And to have a goalscorer in your team like him means you will win games. We have respect for him but it will be a different type of respect, because when you are on the pitch you are playing against each other and have to compete.

"I know what Michael likes to do and I will be aware of that on Saturday. We have to try to keep him out. Our target as defenders is to keep a clean sheet and that means stopping Michael Owen."