Love Island’s Gemma Owen may have hit the back of the net with bombshell Davide Sanclimenti, but the Italian Stallion was barely reading as her dad Michael Owen left Roberto Ayala eating his dust in Saint-Etienne.
Gemma, 19, is currently living it up in the Majorcan villa as she hopes to find love (all while trying not to reveal her father’s identity as the legendary England ace).
But most of the first batch of singletons are so young that they probably won’t remember Michael in his prime. And, believe it or not, his daughter wasn’t even born yet.
The sports star was arguably at his peak footballing career in 2001 when he won the Ballon d’Or (aka the award for the best player in Europe).
At that point in time, the striker had just turned 22 and had scored an impressive 36 goals and made 54 match appearances that year alone.
‘We have had a great year at Liverpool in winning five trophies (including the Charity Shield) and I’m very happy to have won this award as well,’ Michael enthused at the time.
‘Some fantastic names past and hopefully in the future are going to win this award. I am very happy and delighted to join that list.
‘It’s the highest privilege I can win as a player and I am over the moon to win it. I would like to thank the team and all the staff, everyone who is involved with Liverpool. It’s their award too.’
But how old were the Love Island contestants when Micheal took home his football honour? Well, first things first, Gemma wasn’t even born yet.
Yep, the eldest of the Owen children wasn’t here yet, having been born in 2003.
Davide, who she’s coupled up with, would have just started learning how to read in primary school as he was six at the time of Michael’s triumph, as was real estate agent Andrew La Page.
Lots of the cast though – including Tasha Ghouri and Luca Bish – would have still been in nappies and crawling.
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How old was the cast of Love Island 2022 when Michael Owen was at his peak in 2001?
Gemma Owen – not born
Davide Sanclimenti – six
Tasha Ghouri – two
Paige Thorne – three
Dami Hope – five
Indiyah Polack – two
Liam Llewellyn – one
Ikenna Ekwonna – two
Andrew Le Page – six
Amber Beckford – three
Luca Bish – two
Ekin-Su Cülcüloğlu – six
Afia Tonkmor – four
Besides killing it in 2001, another iconic Michael moment took place at the 1998 World Cup a few years earlier when he was just 18.
Many will remember how he scored one of the most impressive solo goals in World Cup history during England’s last 16 match against Argentina, which was credited with inspiring the next generation of footballers.
But, of course, the majority of this year’s Love Island intake wouldn’t have been a glint in their parents’ eyes.
Gemma has not yet revealed to her fellow islanders just who her dad is, but we’re sure it’s only a matter of time before she slips up.
Whether the contestants will sincerely remember who he is, remains a mystery.
Love Island airs tonight at 9pm on ITV2.
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