Hull make move for NUFC striker Michael Owen

Jun 21 2009 by Neil Farrington, Sunday Sun

MICHAEL OWEN will be offered a Premier League escape route from Newcastle – by Hull City.

The Tigers, who stayed up at the Magpies’ expense on the final day of last season, are preparing to offer Owen a £40,000-a-week one-year deal.

That would represent a huge wage cut for Owen, who was on £100,000-plus a week at Newcastle.

But Hull will sweeten the deal by offering him bonuses of £20,000 per game and £10,000 per goal at the KC Stadium.

Owen may still believe he is worthy of a bigger stage, but it remains to be seen whether the former England striker – whose agents have distributed a brochure profiling his talents to eight top-flight clubs – will receive a better offer.

Meanwhile, the word in London is that Newcastle are the subject of two firm bids from rival consortia – one largely based in America, the other in England. But former Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd is understood to have not yet made an offer for the club.