Beckham’s Madrid move not real deal

AS the year 2005 looms, shrouded with uncertainty, David Beckham stands at a crossroads in his career.

The England captain will turn 30 on May 2, and in football terms, while not quite an OAP, he will be into advanced middle age.

Beckham’s future must surely have exercised his own mind. His sporting New Year’s resolution will no doubt be to do his best for Real Madrid - to get back into the team would be a start - but the end of the season, and the decisions to be made then, will already be in his mind and exerting a nagging influence.

If he were to be brutally honest with himself, Beckham would have to admit the move to Madrid has not been a success other than on the commercial front. His fitness and therefore his footballing performances have suffered, his personal life has been adversely affected, though self-inflicted, and in terms of trophies he has won the square root of sweet FA.

It was Beckham’s misfortune that he made the move to Madrid just as all the other so-called galacticos’ stars were beginning to wane.

Real’s misfortunes have not been down to him, but due to an unbalanced team, poor coaching appointments and a collective contented conceit that led to a presumption of superiority that was often not warranted.

The most noticeable change was that Beckham, one of the fittest and most dynamic players in any league, has often looked sluggish when playing for England. He was still great with dead-balls but his movement and energy were diminished.

That raises questions about the training regime at the Spanish club over the last couple of years, for the same criticisms could also be levelled at Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo since they took the Real euro.

If there is no improvement on that score, then Beckham needs to get out. But, approaching his 30s, the most pressing problem facing the most famous footballer in the world is not so much ‘where will he go?’ as ‘who can afford him?’, and of those that can, ‘will they have him?’

The European experiment has not worked for Beckham. Real have sucked a lot of the commercial juice out of him and will not be too bothered if they sell the husk back to the Premiership.

Chelsea would be the most obvious destination, and a year ago that might have happened but would Jose Mourinho, someone who is so wedded to the team ethic that he might as well share a bed with it, really want such a superstar to come in, with all the disruption that would accompany Beckham’s arrival? The answer, sadly for Beckham, is probably not.

Arsenal would be his next choice, for the Beckhams would much prefer London to going back to the north, but the way the Gunners play is somewhat at odds with Beckham’s qualities. Arsene Wenger chooses attacking midfielders with pace and his team’s style is all about one-touch play and counter-attacks. Long passes and Beckham’s trademark crosses would work brilliantly for some teams, but not Arsenal.

Manchester United are clearly non-starters, even though there is persuasive argument that Alex Ferguson has yet to find an adequate replacement for the player he sold almost two years ago.

That means Beckham would probably have to accept a club outside the big three, with the best option perhaps being a developing team on the brink of good things. Liverpool and Tottenham spring to mind - they would suit him and he them, though he would have to swallow some pride to accept a diminishment in stature - especially if they were not playing in the Champions League.

The other choice left to Beckham is to stay put and hope that whichever coach comes in during the annual summer changeover can turn Real Madrid around and make them a real force to be reckoned with again.

But again, there are risks with that - and of course he may find himself persona non grata with the new coach.

Beckham needs to regain his peak physical condition because, somewhat unfairly, the mutterings about his performances for England have already become a clamour. He is still a key man for England - and especially because his game is not based on pace - but others are now knocking loudly on the door.

The next World Cup is only 18 months away, and it will probably be his last appearance in the world’s biggest single sports event.

Beckham needs to focus all his attention on that, his final opportunity to show those doubters that he was, and is, a world-class player.