Wayne Rooney and Michael Owen: How it feels to be an England prodigy

England’s 'golden generation' are in Italy preparing for a European Championship in which they are being heavily tipped, in many parts of the media, to potentially deliver the country’s first major trophy since the World Cup in 1966.goal against Argentina in Saint-Etienne, Michael Owen is gearing up to lead the England line in the opening game against France.

“Wayne just came in and in one of the first training sessions we were doing a shooting practice and he chipped the keeper. “The Everton player is good but he is no Pele. Rooney is not Michael Owen - he was a far better player on his debut for the English team.”Thuram’s lack of research was to be quickly found out.

“I remember him doing an interview saying he didn’t know who I was and that stuck with me and I remember thinking, 'Right, OK… Wait for this game, because if I get a chance, I'm going to smash you'. Rooney was arguably even better in the group stages of 2004. Hard off the back of his all-action display against France, he went on to score twice in England’s second and third group games against Switzerland and Croatia.

Owen 1998 and Rooney 2004 is a shared experience on two counts: that of a career-defining breakthrough moment and also, arguably, the zenith of their entire international careers.

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