Showroom dummies?

Three days ago, he was the forgotten man of English football, plagued by injury and a member of relegated Newcastle United's squad. Now, he's Manchester United's latest signing; some say replacing Carlos Tevez; others say an outstanding player in his own right; critics nevertheless question Alex Ferguson's judgement. Whichever is true, Owen was at the end of his deal with Newcastle and was entitled to leave for Manchester without a transfer fee changing hands. Was the main motivation for Man Utd in the light of their debts and the need to control costs? Or, was it because of Owen's much derided digital brochure, a 30+ page glossy document produced by the Wasserman Group, Owen's representatives, in which the player's virtues were extolled? Ferguson is thought to have looked at the document, his interest subsequently tweaked by it; does this mean that we are entering a new era of player selling and acquisition, and representation? Just like cars, holidays and houses, will players need to have a glossy brochure in which they highlight their performance and benefits? Now, with the benefit of hindsight, was the digital brochure a good idea or a bad idea? And will Owen's real legacy to football be the goals he scored, or the way in which he changed the labour market in football?