Michael Owen won't be a happy man this morning. Having been tipped to finally force Fabio Capello to consider him a viable option for South Africa after scoring a hat-trick against Wolfsburg, he was benched for Manchester United's home match against Aston Villa. Worst still, another England hopeful, Gabriel Agbonlahor, scored an early goal and, after Owen's introduction, he was unable to prevent the champions slipping to a 1-0 defeat. For Joe Lovejoy in the Guardian, it all made for a very unhappy evening for little Micky.

Michael Owen turns 30 tomorrow – a worrying landmark for any footballer, despite the example of the Peter Pan they call Ryan Giggs. It is certainly not an age when a World Cup hopeful wants to be on the bench for his club while younger, ambitious rivals press their claims for international selection.

Conventional wisdom holds that it is Wayne Rooney and Jermain Defoe who will keep Owen out of Fabio Capello's squad to travel to South Africa next summer, but last night, while he kicked nothing more rewarding than his feet for 45 minutes as a Manchester United substitute, Owen saw another compelling challenger join the list.

The goal Gabriel Agbonlahor buried for Aston Villa after 20 minutes was his eighth in 16 Premier League appearances this season, and those who still doubt whether he can be effective against top-quality opposition should bear in mind that he has now scored against United in each of the past four seasons. The Villans' hero could well be timing his World Cup run to perfection.

It never looked like being United's night, nor this time was it Michael Owen's. Young Gabriel, on the other hand, left with a huge smile on that angelic face.

Meanwhile, there's something about a game between Liverpool and Arsenal taking place at 4pm. And former Arsenal forward Alan Smith has written in the Daily Telegraph about his belief that fit-again Fernando Torres is the man to make things happen at Anfield.

Think back to October when Liverpool deservedly beat Manchester United. Think back to the circumstances leading up to that game.

Rafael Benítez's side had just lost four on the trot, including the beach ball game at Sunderland and a home defeat to Lyon, that left their Champions League chances hanging by a thread.

But buoyed by the return of Fernando Torres, Liverpool reacted like a wounded beast, tearing into United with unstinting energy and aggression. The champions that day couldn't handle the pace, so determined were the home side to get a result.

Thinking about it, the situation isn't too dissimilar now going into Sunday's showdown with Arsenal. Torres returns to a team who, once again, have their backs firmly pressed against the wall. The football world awaits Liverpool's response.

It doesn't take a genius, therefore, to work out Benítez's likely game plan. Because if the Spaniard's players go about their work in similar fashion to the United duel, if they set the same kind of frantic tempo and pile into tackles with equal force, it will be interesting to see how Arsenal cope.