Michael Owen fronts PES 08
A "real coup for Konami".
Konami is boasting this afternoon about signing struggling striker Michael Owen to front Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 in the UK.
He'll be jostling for box position with Premiership player of the year Cristiano Ronaldo when the game launches across Europe this autumn.
"Securing Michael Owen is a real coup for Konami," said Jon Murphy, PES lead at Konami. "Since he burst on to the scene he has proven himself an incredible goal-scorer, netting at every level - both domestic and international. We are delighted to be working alongside such a talent on PES 2008."
Owen was voted European player of the year in 2001, and scored that wonderful goal against Argentina in the World Cup a year later. However, Owen has only recently returned to full fitness after injuries forced him out. Many observers feel he's lost the pace and bite that made him such a clinical goal-poacher to begin with. Tom doesn't though - Tom thinks he should come home to Liverpool. [Come home to Liverpool, Michael! -Tom] See.
Pro Evoultion Soccer 2008 will be on show at this year's Games Convention in Leipzig, where Konami will be offering attendees hands-on time with each version of the game: Xbox 360, PS3, PS2, PC, PSP and DS.
New to the series in this instalment is Teamvision, which will enable opponents to learn your tactics and adjust their response accordingly.
Konami is also promising significant next-generation improvements as it finally begins to build the game specifically with the new machines in mind.
Pop over to our Pro Evolution Soccer 2008 gallery to see how it's shaping up.