English international Michael Owen with Real Madrid(Wikimedia)

Michael Owen has had a brilliant career, but people know that it was his injuries that hindered him from becoming one of those players that marked a generation.

The Manchester United striker will not be a part of Fabio Capello's plans as it was announced on Friday that he will have to undergo surgery to repair damage that he suffered in his hamstring during the final of the Carling Cup this past Sunday.

"It was a big blow for (Michael)," said Alex Ferguson in a press conference. This news rocked the Manchester United camp as Owen finally settled into his role of supersub for Wayne Rooney. Ferguson mentioned the fact that the severity of the injury was greater than expected.

Owen was becoming a contributor and added depth to the Red Devils bench as a replacement for Carlos Tevez. In his limited appearances due to injury (19) he was able to score three goals. Owen is scheduled for surgery on Monday.

This is not the first time that the English international suffered an injury which kept him out of World Cup play. In the 2006 edition, Owen suffered a severe knee injury in the fourth minute of final group stage match against Sweden.

The former Liverpool star came onto the international scene as England's teenage superstar and made a name for himself especially in the second round match against Argentina as he scored one of the best goals of France'98.

In 2001, Owen led Liverpool to the FA Cup as he served up one of the greatest individual performances seen by the Anfield faithful.

Owen currently finds himself in fourth place all-time on the Three Lions scoring list with 40 goals. He is just behind Jimmy Greaves (44), Gary Lineker (48), and Sir Bobby Charlton (49).