Michael Owen embarrassed a teenager decades ago in a notorious “well done, he’s 13” video.
Owen, then England’s poster boy, rifled past 13-year-old goalkeeper Jamie Hutchinson at an empty Britannia Stadium during his Michael Owen’s Soccer Skills show in 1999.
The former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker, who scored 40 goals in 89 England appearances, embarrassed the youngster by scoring in multiple ways.
The young kid looked helpless as Owen enthusiastically celebrated.
What’s really interesting is that, even after 26 years have passed, the video is still frequently circulated on social media.
Owen’s antics led Neville Southall to make the witty ‘he’s 13’ remark, to which the ex-Liverpool star ignored – simply replying ‘game, set and match Owen’.
Owen has now revealed that he was actually encouraged to celebrate at that time.
“I was only a couple of years older than him myself! It’s probably funny now,” he told talkSPORT.
“I got back from the World Cup in 98 and there were loads of commercial opportunities, things like that.
“I was asked to do a soccer skills video on a soccer skills book. So I had to explain, talk through, finishing, volleying, heading, whatever the skill was. Inevitably need a goalkeeper there.
“I never picked them and so I turned up to do the show and to talk through how I see scoring a goal and what I think in certain scenarios and whatever.
“There was a kid in goal that I had to score past and when I scored they’re like, come on, no, you need to show a bit more animation.
“Like celebrate when you score, this is going on a video. So people don’t know this, right?
“But people just laugh at you no matter what. Then they take a little extract of anything.
“There’s loads of things like that on the internet on me.”