Owen suffers a new injury blow

Liverpool's hopes of closing a three-point gap on Premiership pacesetters Leeds have been hit by an injury to Michael Owen.

The England striker, far and away Liverpool's top scorer with 18 goals, is struggling to shake off an ankle problem sustained in the closing stages against Birmingham on Saturday and is expected to miss tomorrow's trip to Southampton.

While the loss of Owen might reduce Liverpool's chances of capitalising on their game in hand on most of the leading pack, it looks like handing Emile Heskey an unexpected opportunity to revive his faltering Anfield fortunes.

Heskey must have feared a prolonged spell on the bench after seeing Nicolas Anelka make the most of his promotion to the starting line-up against Birmingham by forging an immediate understanding with Owen.

But the out-of-sorts front-runner is in line for a chance to increase his meagre tally of two League goals following another injury setback for Owen, which threatens to disrupt a new partnership that has been the talk of Anfield since Saturday's 3-0 FA Cup romp.

Defender John Arne Riise led the acclaim for a pairing that could quickly develop into one of the most feared in the Premiership. 'Michael and Nico worked well together,' said the Norway full back on icons.com. 'They have tremendous pace and are always looking to score. 'Nicolas knows he has come to a great team, full of players prepared to work hard, and he has fitted in perfectly.'