Michael Owen scored his first Manchester United goal on his début yesterday and is eager to continue proving he can handle the pressure of being one of our players.

He has revealed how Sir Alex Ferguson spoke to him about the responsibility that comes with wearing our famous number seven shirt, but Owen insisted without hesitation he was up to the job.

“This is a big chance to show that I can do it again, to show that I can handle the pressure and the expectation,” said Owen. “I’ve handled the pressure and scrutiny before and all the managers I’ve played under will all say I can handle it. That shirt has pressures of its own and some great players have worn it in the past, but I will do it justice. The manager asked me to wear the shirt. He said a player needs broad shoulders for it and he asked me if I felt I could handle it. I said ‘yes’ without hesitation. I know it represents so much. Two big players have left Manchester United in Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez. There were a lot of goals in Ronaldo and I’m here to hopefully fill that gap.”