“You’re talking £100-something million probably” – Michael Owen compares himself to Kylian Mbappe as Liverpool legend estimates his worth from playing career
Former Liverpool striker Michael Owen believes he would have been worth over £100 million during his peak at the club, as he compared himself to Kylian Mbappe.
The 2001 Ballon d'Or winner left Liverpool in 2004 for Real Madrid, in a deal worth £8 million plus Antonio Nunez (Daily Star).
Owen was a white-hot prospect during his prime at Liverpool, but injuries took their toll during his time at the Bernabeu.
In an interview with AceOdds, Owen was asked how much he thought he would be worth today, before the pundit mentioned Mbappe's name. He said:
"I don't know. I mean, it felt like figures were a little bit higher, one or two years ago than they actually are now. Obviously, the (Erling) Haaland move wasn't really a true reflection of his price because of the agency fee and all the different stipulations he had in the contract."
He added:
"So it was an open market, free market, when I was 19/20 and at the absolute peak of my powers. I don't know, you're talking £100-something million probably, I guess it's hard to say."
Owen further stated that he has similar style to the Paris Saint-Germain forward, as he proclaimed:
"Well, what’s Mbappe worth nowadays? I really don't know. If he was to leave PSG you'd be looking at £150/£200 million maybe? So if a Mbappe was worth 150/200 [million], I don't know..."
He added:
"But yeah, I was that similar type of player who was breaking through, winning the Ballon d'Or, won two Golden Boots and went to the World Cup at 18 and all that kind of stuff."
The former England forward later joked:
"The one thing that you would say is even if I was worth £150 million, then probably if someone bought it they wouldn't have got a bargain because my career sort of got worse as I got older."
Would Liverpool legend Michael Owen really be worth the same amount as Kylian Mbappe?
While Owen was one of the leading forwards of his generation, Mbappe has already won the FIFA World Cup and is in sparkling form for PSG.
The France international has scored 17 goals in 17 appearances across all competitions this term. He signed a new deal to extend his stay at PSG in the summer.
Owen did guide Liverpool to a treble of trophies the year he won the Ballon d'Or. This is something which the 23-year-old France attacker will undoubtedly want to achieve.
Owen scored 158 goals and provided 47 assists in 297 appearances for Liverpool.