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Newcastle United are not happy with the amount of compensation they will get from the FA after the injury to Michael Owen in the World Cup. Newcastle are not a member of the exclusive G-14 grouping of top clubs, but this is one of the issues that concerns them and has led to a case being referred from the Commercial Court in Charleroi to the European Court of Justice for a ruling. SBJ Group, the FA's insurer, will cover the cost of Owen's £115,000 a week wages during his possible absence of up to six months, a saving for the Magpies that could amount to as much as £3 million. Newcastle are also thought to have taken out insurance on their prize striker. However, chairman Freddy Shepherd commented, 'When you lend somebody something and they return them injured and broken you shouldn't have to pay for the repair. That's what happened at Newcastle and the level of compensation isn't high enough. It's far too low.' Glen Roeder, the Newcastle manager, will not be provided with the same resources as his predecessors and will have to juggle his finances while meeting the appetite for success in Geordieland. More generally, it could be argued that while clubs like Newcastle have a case, the chance of participating in the World Cup encourages players to aim for higher levels of performance while also boosting their capacity to attract crowds.
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