Beckham asks for £160,000 a week wages

David Beckham has reportedly asked Manchester United for wages of £160,000 a week to keep him at Old Trafford for the rest of his career.

The deal would make Beckham the highest paid footballer in the world ahead of Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo who net roughly £90,000 a week.

The claims are sure to provoke outrage throughout the footballing world, but Beckham's demands are a shadow of what sportsmen such as Tiger Woods earn each week.

Woods accumulates £1million for seven days work while boxer Lennox Lewis and Formula One driver Michael Schumacher earn around £500,000 a week.

Beckham's agent, Jon Holmes, told The Sun newspaper: "Everything is still in negotiation, but I think wages of £100,000 a week will come fairly quickly."

The United midfielder plays roughly 40 games for his club a season, meaning on wages of this magnitude he would earn £2300 for every minute he spends spraying passes and curling in free-kicks.

However, the deal would disrupt United's pay structure and mean Beckham would be paid more than double that of the next biggest earner at Old Trafford - captain Roy Keane who is on £50,000 a week.

The club have yet to comment on the situation.