Beckham ‘shock’ at del Bosque departure

DAVID BECKHAM heads into the final lap of his promotional tour of the Far East admitting the departure of Vicente del Bosque came as a “shock” to him.

The England captain will complete his £25million transfer from Manchester United to the new Spanish champions next week.

Real won the Spanish league following a 3-1 win over Athletic Bilbao on Sunday, but it appears coach del Bosque’s failure to win the Champions League this season has prevented him earning a new deal.

“It would probably be unfair for me to comment because this is the first time I’ve actually heard,” Beckham said yesterday whilst in Kuala Lumpur.

“It’s come as a shock to me, that is all I can say.”

Beckham claimed his move to Real was “a dream come true”, saying : “I am really so excited about it. To join a team like Real Madrid is massive in anyone’s eyes.

“I hope I will be as successful with them as I was with Manchester United.”

As for Real’s title success, he added: “It just made me feel so excited to get over there and start playing and meet the players.”

Following his visit to Malaysia, Beckham moves to Vietnam this morning and then Thailand in the afternoon to complete his tour organised by Castrol UK.

Beckham will enjoy a little bit of football fun in Vietnam with several members of the national squad as well as pop stars and artists.

After a brief trip to Bangkok, he is then expected to return home and begin preparing for a new life in Spain.

Beckham is due to be unveiled a week tomorrow in Madrid providing he passes a medical 24 hours earlier.