Owen picked up a slight strain playing for Real Madrid against Deportivo La Coruna on Sunday night, but when Sven updated us about his striker he was hopeful that Owen was still on course to return to full fitness in time for the crunch World Cup qualifier against Wales at Old Trafford on Saturday.

"Michael has a slight problem with his hamstring but we believe it is only a minor issue," explained Eriksson who knows that the games in Manchester and Baku offer six vital points on the road to Germany.

"Michael will meet up with the rest of the squad on Tuesday and our medical staff, who are already aware of the situation, will assess him then.

"Our feeling at the moment is that it should only keep him out of one or two training sessions so we expect him to be available for selection for the game against Wales on Saturday."

Stay with TheFA.com for all the news and views from inside the England camp.

Michael Owen Factfile
Nationality: England (63 caps, 27 goals)
Date of Birth: 14 December 1979 
Place of Birth: Chester
Height: 5' 8''
Weight: 10 13 

Year

Club

Apps

Goals

1996/97

Liverpool

2

1

1997/98

Liverpool

36

18

1998/99

Liverpool

30

18

1999/00

Liverpool

27

11

2000/01

Liverpool

28

16

2001/02

Liverpool

29

19

2002/03

Liverpool

35

19

2003/04

Liverpool

29

16

2004/05

Real Madrid

5

0


Michael Owen - England Player Profile

Statistics refer to league appearances/goals only