BIOGRAPHY
His parents Sandra and Ted were keen
football fans and ardent Manchester United supporters, so it was no surprise
when David quickly became hooked on both the game and the club.
David's footballing ability was soon clear
for all to see. By the age of eight, he had scored more than 100 goals for his
childhood team, Ridgeway Rovers.
Three years later, he made his Old Trafford
debut - as a mascot for Manchester United in a league game against West Ham!
At the age of 12, David attended the Bobby
Charlton Soccer School, where he won an award. Part of the prize was the
opportunity to train with Barcelona, who would attempt to sign him 15 years
later.
It was not long before a number of English
league clubs started taking notice of David. He had trials with his local side,
Leyton Orient, and attended Tottenham Hotspur's school of excellence.
However, there was only one team that David
was going to end up joining and, in 1989, he signed schoolboy forms with
Manchester United.
Moving to a club more than 200 miles from
the family home was a huge commitment - but later events would prove it to be a
very wise one indeed.
David signed schoolboy forms with United on
his 14th birthday in May 1989. He was part of a bumper crop of young talent at
the club, alongside Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and his close friend
Gary Neville.
David made his debut as a substitute in a
League Cup game against Brighton in 1992, and scored on his first European start
against Galatasaray in December 1994.
But it was only after he returned from a
loan spell at Preston towards the end of the 1994-95 season that David began to
establish himself as a first team regular.
The following year, United clinched a
Premiership and FA Cup double, with David contributing plenty of goals and
crosses from the right wing.
The following season, his profile rocketed
when he scored from inside his own half against Wimbledon. The amazing strike
was voted Goal of the Season. He then won PFA Young Player of the Year for 1997
as United clinched their second successive title.
Two years later came United’s greatest
ever achievement when they became the only team ever to do the treble by winning
the Premiership, FA Cup and European Cup in 1999.
The key role played by David in this triple
triumph was recognised when he finished runner-up to Rivaldo in both the
European Player of the Year and FIFA World Player of the Year awards. David is
one of only two English players to have come second in the World Player of the
Year awards.
United defended their Premiership title by a
record margin in 2000 and made it three championships on the trot in 2001. David
again finished runner-up in the World Player of the Year awards and was voted
BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
He enjoyed the most prolific season of his
career in 2001-02, scoring 11 goals in 28 League appearances, but Arsenal pipped
United to the Premiership title.
However, United gained revenge the following
year, overcoming an 8 point lead held by the Gunners and clinching the title on
the second last match of the season. It was the ninth and, as it turned out,
last major trophy that David would win with United.
In the summer, Manchester United accepted a
bid of £25million from Real Madrid and David signed a four-year deal at
the Bernabeu on July 1st. His 14-year spell with his boyhood club was over.
When David Beckham signed for Real Madrid in
the summer of 2003, he joined perhaps the most famous and expensively-assembled
collection of elite football talent in history.
David was the latest big-name addition to a
team that already boasted French superstar Zinedine Zidane, Spain captain Raul,
flying Portuguese winger Luis Figo and Brazilian legends Ronaldo and Roberto
Carlos.
On signing for Real, David was given the
number 23 because his usual 7 shirt was occupied by Raul.
He made an electric start to life with his
new club, scoring on his home debut as Real won the Spanish Super Cup against
Mallorca, and adding another just three minutes into his league debut, a 2-1 win
against Real Betis.
Despite a stunning start to the season, the
club failed to win a trophy that season and this continued for the next two
years as Real Madrid couldn’t match a resurgent Barcelona. Despite the lack of
trophies, David was seen by many observers to be one of Real Madrid’s best
players, shown by the fact that he led the Spanish league in goal assists in the
2005-6 season.
In the summer of 2006, high profile lawyer
Ramon Calderon was elected as club president and he moved quickly to appoint
Fabio Capello as manager, significantly reinforcing the squad with world class
players such as Ruud Van Nistlerooy and Italy’s World Cup-winning captain
Fabio Cannavaro.
David is part of an even stronger squad, one
that looks better equipped to end the club’s three-year trophy drought.
David Beckham made his England debut against
Moldova in August 1996.
Two years later, he was selected for the
1998 World Cup squad and scored his first goal for his country, a trademark
free-kick in a group game against Colombia. Disaster struck in the second round
match against Argentina when David was sent off after tangling with opponent
Diego Simeone. England went on to lose the match on penalties and go out of the
World Cup.
The following months were the toughest of
David’s life as he was made a ‘scapegoat’ for England’s World Cup exit.
He did what he knows best and continued to work hard on the football pitch
putting in strong performances for his country and winning honours with United.
His strength of character was rewarded when
David was appointed England captain in late 2000 by caretaker England manager,
Peter Taylor. Sven-Goran Eriksson took over as coach and chose to keep David as
leader of the side. The following matches saw some of David’s most memorable
games in a Three Lions shirt including a 5-1 win in Germany and a sensational
last-minute free-kick against Greece at Old Trafford to secure England’s place
at the 2002 World Cup.
David’s World Cup life came full circle
when he scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot against Argentina
in 2002. England’s World Cup campaign was eventually ended in the
quarter-finals by eventual winners Brazil, coached by Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Two years later, Scolari was again the
architect of England’s downfall when his Portugal side knocked them out of the
Euro 2004 quarter-finals on penalties.
England went into the 2006 World Cup in
Germany with high hopes. Despite not playing to their full potential, they
cruised through their group and another Beckham free-kick gave them victory over
Ecuador in the second round. That goal meant he became the only player in
England football history to have scored in three World Cups.
But things again went wrong at the
quarter-final stage against Portugal and Scolari. Just as in 2004, the game went
to penalties and again England lost. The following day, an emotional David
resigned the captaincy after nearly six years.
Since then, new coach Steve McClaren has
signalled his intention to try something different by leaving David out of his
first few squads, but David’s passion to play for his country remains undimmed.
Source
:
http://www.thedavidbeckhamacademy.co.uk/uk/davidbeckham/