Owen missed Newcastle United's goalless draw at Portsmouth at the weekend with a leg injury but is relishing a return to international duty against Austria on Saturday.

"I'm confident I'll be fit for England on Saturday," he told reporters on Monday. "It was just a dead leg picked up in training and shouldn't affect me too much in the next few days.

"In any case, the anticipation of two huge games ahead of us against Austria and Poland will speed along my recovery."

Owen, who has scored two goals for Newcastle following his recent transfer from Real Madrid [Images], said the England players were desperate to erase memories of their shock defeat by Northern Ireland last month.

"I have been impatient for these matches to come along since the defeat to Northern Ireland. This is our chance to put things right and I'm confident we will," he said. The 25-year-old Owen, who has scored 32 international goals, accepted the criticism that followed the 1-0 defeat in Belfast.

"We have to take it on the chin," he said. "We know the performance was not acceptable, both as a team and as individuals. We are all much better players than that.

"There was a lot of frustration at the way we performed in Belfast. We let ourselves and the fans down. We are determined to react in the most positive way."

SUPPOSED DISHARMONY

Owen played down media reports of a rift between manager Sven-Goran Eriksson and his players.

"There has been a lot written about supposed disharmony in the dressing room," he said. "Nothing could be further from the truth.

"This is a tight squad, with a firm belief both in ourselves and in Sven-Goran Eriksson and the coaching staff.

"Team spirit will be important over the coming days. Rest assured it is as strong as ever.

"The players are fully behind the manager. His record in competitive games is outstanding and people seem to have forgotten the defeat against Northern Ireland was his first in a qualifier in over four years.

"Perhaps we have got used to a certain level of success under Sven. I have not changed my belief that he is the right man to lead us to (the World Cup finals in) Germany [Images] and achieve success there."

Two victories would put England into the finals without having to go through the playoffs.

"We still have automatic qualification in our own hands," Owen said. "I am convinced we will get those wins and I'm sure no one in the England camp will be thinking about any other scenario.

"The World Cup is the pinnacle of any player's career," added Owen, who rose to prominence at the age of 18 with a magnificent goal against Argentina in the 1998 World Cup.

"We are all determined to get to Germany and test ourselves on the biggest stage of all.

"Throughout my time as an England player, the team has always enjoyed magnificent support at home and abroad. It's important all the fans know that we crave success as much as them."

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