Owen out for the rest of the season

Michael Owen’s dream of representing England in South Africa this summer appears over after he was ruled out for the rest of the season with a hamstring injury.

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson today confirmed the striker would miss the rest of the campaign after suffering the injury in the Carling Cup final victory over Aston Villa last Sunday.

Owen, who scored in the Wembley final, had admitted before the injury that he was a “long shot” to make Fabio Capello’s World Cup squad.