For a man intent on keeping Michael Owen, Joe Kinnear performed an admirable task in reminding rival clubs of his selling points, after insisting that the Newcastle United forward will not be short of potential suitors should he decide that his future lies away from St James’ Park.

“I think he’ll be spoilt for choice,” the interim manager said of the possibility that Owen, signed for a club-record £16 million by Graeme Souness in the summer of 2005, will decide to exercise his prerogative from January to discuss a Bosman free transfer.

Kinnear admits that he would like to have Owen at his disposal should he succeed in turning his part-time role into something more permanent under any new owner, but he concedes that the England striker, who has this week been linked with Chelsea and Manchester City, could prove the ideal addition to any one of the Barclays Premier League “Big Four” squads in the January transfer window. “It’s understandable that other clubs are interested,” he said. “Michael’s 28, has got bags of ability and he can score goals. There must be dozens who want him. Dozens.

“Who’s to say it won’t be Manchester United, or Liverpool, anybody? If all these clubs say they’re chasing Michael, he is in a position to choose. It would take the top four to come in to take him. He’s still a young man, more than capable of playing for most teams.

“Michael’s probably in the best position, better than the position the club is in. You’d love to be in that position, wouldn’t you? Michael can’t lose.”

Securing Owen’s future is one of many issues that has been put on the back burner as Mike Ashley, Newcastle’s owner, struggles to find an investor willing to match his £300 million valuation of the club of which he has been in control for less than 18 months. Keith Harris, the investment banker in charge of the sale, insists that a deal should go through early in the new year after the emergence of two front-runners, by which time the decision may be made to sell Owen in January in order to recoup a percentage of his value, rather than see the former Real Madrid player depart for nothing in the summer, when his £100,000-a-week contract expires.

Owen hopes to earn a recall to the starting lineup for the trip to Fulham tomorrow after proving his recovery from a groin problem with a brief appearance in Monday’s 2-0 victory over Aston Villa, a win that lifted the club out of the bottom three.

“Michael’s too bright to be affected by all the speculation,” Kinnear, who may name an unchanged side, said. The 61-year-old is confident that he can persuade Owen to stay, but with the length of his tenure undecided, he added: “I don’t know my own future but I’ve said to him that if my future is with this club, so will his, as far as I’m concerned.

“Will I have any influence over him? If I am still here, yes. I hope I could keep him here. I have a perfect relationship with him.”