NEW Geordie hero Michael Owen has revealed a passion for the Premiership convinced him to turn his back on Real Madrid and make the £16m club record move to Newcastle United.

Around 15,000 fanatical fans crammed into St James' Park yesterday afternoon to witness Owen's first performance in a black and white shirt - a stroll around the hallowed turf.

Liverpool's reluctance to match Newcastle's massive offer allowed chairman Freddy Shepherd to pull off a transfer coup that ranks alongside the Magpies' past captures of Kevin Keegan and Alan Shearer.

Owen, who spent most of the press conference having to straight-bat questions about why he is not returning for a second spell at Anfield, signed a four-year deal and is looking forward to a new career in the North-East.

Having spent the last 12 months in Spain, where he struggled to become a regular under three different managers at the Bernabeu, the 25-year-old is relishing the prospect of playing where he feels he belongs - the English top-flight.

Owen, who will make his debut for Newcastle against Fulham at St James' a week on Saturday, is eager to help his latest club finally fulfil their undoubted potential.

"You only have to look at Newcastle and everyone around here to realise this is a very big club and a bigger club waiting to happen," said England's fourth most prolific striker ever.

"I also wanted to get back to the Premiership and get the passion back into my game through playing football. The Spanish league is a fantastic league but it hasn't got the passion of the Premiership.

"I want to wake up on a Saturday morning and play football in front of fantastic supporters. My life is all about football and I didn't quite have the excitement when I woke up on a Saturday in Spain."

In a glowing compliment to his new employers, Owen rubbished the suggestion he has only made the move to Newcastle to further his chances of keeping his place in next summer's Word Cup squad.

He would only have been on the periphery of things at Real, where Raul, Ronaldo and Robinho are all ahead of him in the pecking order, and there was a feeling his starting place in the England side was under threat.

It is for that reason why many claim Owen has decided to leave La Liga. But he said: "It's certainly not going to have a negative effect on my chances of playing in Germany by coming here and playing with a lot of my fellow England players."

Owen has never tried to hide his preferred choice. He wanted to go back to Liverpool and he held talks with Reds' manager Rafael Benitez before meeting up with Newcastle on Monday.

But Liverpool refused to pay double the £8m transfer fee - including winger Antonio Nunez - they received from Real a year ago and that always meant Newcastle held the upper-hand.

There were other clubs monitoring the situation, including newly-promoted Wigan, but Owen was always going to opt for Newcastle or Liverpool - or remain in Spain.

"I had a few options and as soon as I knew Real Madrid weren't going to play me I didn't see myself there," said Owen, who initially only wanted to move to Newcastle on a year's loan.

"The only reservation I had about coming here was that there is no European football. But then, after meeting everyone, why would I come on loan for a year, help them get into Europe and then leave? That's why I signed a four-year deal."

Owen's friendship with skipper Alan Shearer was Newcastle's trump card. And the younger of the two revealed the legendary talisman's powers of persuasion even included the number nine shirt.

"Alan is going to retire at the end of the season and I would like him to play for as long as he can," said Owen, who was paraded wearing number ten yesterday.

"One of the main things that surprised me was that Alan offered me the number nine shirt for his last season.

"It was a great gesture but everyone knows what that means to him up here. I was never going to take it."

Owen claimed he will not be thinking what might have been had he returned to Liverpool.

"I had half an eye on what it would be like to go back to Anfield," said Owen, who first played at St James' Park for England's Under-15s and scored 14 in 11 appearances at his new home during his time at Merseyside.

"I spoke to Liverpool and that deal couldn't come off. That's life."