I saw on the news this week that David Beckham is leaving LA Galaxy and wants to play one last season with another club, as a final ‘challenge’ to end his career on. Having been a Man United fan for many years, I obviously remember when he was with us. I’ll be honest and say that I never actually rated him particularly highly – he’s pretty good with a dead ball and scores the odd decent strike, but he never stood out as the hard-working, talismanic player that many desperately wanted him to be.
In the end I think he succeeded in creating a persona and brand the preceded any talent (or lack of) that he had (or didn’t have). He played in many of the biggest clubs in the world throughout his career, moving to Real Madrid after us and also playing a stint at AC Milan, on loan from LA Galaxy. I think it’s fair to say that he was never the best player in any of the teams he played in. You could be cruel and say that Real Madrid and AC Milan got more out of signing him through replica shirt sales than football performance, but I wouldn’t go quite that far. What he lacked in all-round skill and football ability he must have made up for in experience and, through his presence alone, motivation and inspiration, particularly for the younger players around him.
We’ve not been told who Beckham’s going to for his final season as a professional footballer. There has been talk of some French clubs but there’s also a chance he’ll come back to the Premier League for one last taste of English football. It would be interesting if he did do that, but who for? I’m not sure putting him in a Man United shirt would be a good idea to be honest but you never know, it might just happen again. And he wasn’t all that bad when he was with us…
