David Beckham has been a villain and he has been a hero. After a bad-tempered kick on Diego Simeone in England's 1998 World Cup clash v/ith Argentina, he was cast as the villain of the piece. But, by the end of the 2002 World Cup, he was universally regarded as England’s new hero. His artistry on the ball, superb distribution and the quality of his dead-ball kicl<s were always acknowledged - what he had gained in the intervening years was a greater maturity and outstanding leadership skills.
When he was still a youngster; Beckham won an award at a Bobby Charlton Soccer Skills school and had trials with his local club, Leyton Orient, but it was Manchester United who signed him just after his 16th birthday. Although he made his debut in a League Cup tie against Brighton in September 1992, Alex Ferguson nurtured his young star carefully and it wasn’t until April 1995 that he gave Beckham his Premiership debutThe following season he established himself in United’s midfield and in September 1996 Glenn Hoddle gave him a place in the England team.
Three successive Premiership titles
Beckham was a key figure in United’s celebrated Treble-winning team of the 1998-99 season. During the Champions League campaign, United played Inter Milan, a game that was billed as the return clash between Beckham and Simeone. It was less than a year since the infamous World Cup incident but Beckham gave a superb performance, the two players swapped shirts at the end of the game and the victory went to United. At the end of that season, Beckham was narrowly beaten by Rivaldo for the World Footballer of the Year award.
'Becks’ was instrumental in helping United to their third successive Premiership title in 2001. In October of the same year it was his stunning free-kick in the closing seconds of the game against Greece which reserved England’s place at the 2002 World Cup in japan and Korea.
His service in that World Cup meant that Beckham had a virtually unassailable position as England captain during the 2002-03 season, yet he was unsure of a place in United’s starting line-up. After much speculation on his future, in June 2003 Beckham signed a ?25 million deal to take him to Real Madrid, the team that knocked United out of that season’s Champions Cup.
The final whistle for Wembley
Right: Inspector Graham French on ‘Wellard’ at Wembley Stadium. This last match to be played at the famous old stadium ended in a 1-0 defeat for England by Germany. Opposite above: United fans swarm the streets of Manchester in celebration of their team’s victory, after beating Bayern Munich 2-1 in the European Cup Final in Barcelona. Opposite below: Alex Ferguson proudly parades the European Cup at Manchester Airport.
World History
