|
Perhaps his country's best soccer player, and certainly
one of the biggest celebrities in England, mercurial
midfielder David Beckham is a prodigiously talented
playmaker and scorer who has become a favourite of
England's notoriously sensationalistic tabloids.
Beckham's wedding to Victoria Adams, better known as
Posh of the Spice Girls, was the equivalent of a royal
wedding in British pop culture, and he's a teen idol
in his own right. His constantly changing hairstyles
are the subject of much media scrutiny and bemusement.
But not as much as his left foot, which knocked virtually
all other news off the front pages of the British media
when it was broken during a Champions
League quarter-final against Deportivo La Coruna on
April 10, the victim of a two-footed tackle.
The most high-profile of a daunting succession of injuries
decimating England's midfield, Beckham's broken foot
became the preoccupation of virtually all of England,
even up to the highest levels of the government.
Reports and water-cooler talk was full of doom and
gloom, as it was feared that Beckham wouldn't be available
for first-round action, and possibly not
at all, but a rapid healing process, along with his
superb conditioning, made him available for England's
opener against Sweden, much to the relief of English
coach Sven-Goran Eriksson.
"David Beckham is the captain and most well-known
player in England," said Eriksson. "It's important
for us and the squad to have him on the pitch."
"He is one of the best midfielders in the world,"
Eriksson added. "He has got the best right foot
in the world."
Beckham's beleaguered teammates were buoyed by his
return to the lineup.
"It was fabulous to have Becks out there. It's
a massive boost," said defender Sol Campbell after
Beckham took part in full practice late in May.
His value to the English side is plain; he's renowned
for his lethally accurate shot and spectacular crosses.
He stars for Manchester United, the most storied team
of the English Premier league. In 1999 he was second
in
voting for the World and European Player of the Year
awards. He's also the second-highest-paid player in
the world, his salary of $14.6-million (Cdn) with Man
U eclipsed only by Real Madrid's Zinedine Zidane.
Born May 2, 1975, in Leytonstone, England, Beckham's
talents were evident early. He won the Bobby Charlton
Soccer Skills Award when he was 11 and signed as a trainee
with Man U when he was 15.
He became a household name in 1996 when he scored a
goal against Wimbledon from the half-line. But he hasn't
always been the golden boy of English soccer.
Beckham was the target of much abuse in his homeland
when a temper tantrum earned him a red card in the 1998
World Cup in France. Beckham became a
national pariah through being sent off for kicking at
Argentina's Diego Simeone. Playing a man short, England
lost and was eliminated.
His reputation has recovered since.
"That was four years ago and in the past,"
said Beckham. "A lot has happened since then. It's
made me a stronger person. I have played against Diego
Simeone a couple of times; it's never been a problem,
and it won't be a
problem when we play against him here."
Indeed, Argentina will be one of England's opponents
in the Group of Death -- an extremely difficult pool
of four high-quality teams.
"There is a so-caled Group of Death, and we are
in it. We cannot slip up a all," said Beckham.
"I'm quietly confident. We did well to qualify
and get through straight away instead of playoffs, annd
that was good for the team. Now this is where the serious
stuff starts."
With files from Associated Press
|
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
