100th cap fitting reward for Becks
Beckham said he was honoured and humbled by the experience and described sharing a stage with El Rei as “a highlight moment for me.”
For his part, Pele fondly recalled his own days as a soccer pathfinder in the Big Country with New York Cosmos and then, in a metaphorical passing of the torch to the LA Galaxy player, concluded: “His time is now.”
Nothing out of the ordinary there; the sting was in the tail, as we were treated to the smugly smirking sight of the TV3 presenter declaring: “Nice to hear from one great player there.”
Okay, as stings go it was more dead wasp than Oscar Wilde but still, one has to ask, what is it about Beckham exactly that brings out the kind of hyper-allergic response in people which, these days, is usually reserved for Heather Mills. (And, yes, a red card to anyone who is even thinking about the uncontestable fact that Becks is a bit one-footed).
The default setting of Beckham’s critics seems to be that he is too rich, too handsome, too image-conscious and just too thick ever to be granted a fair hearing.
And you sense that, even if he was none of those things, he’d be found guilty by association anyway just for hooking up with Posh Spice.
That most of the same charge sheet — and, indeed, much worse, in some cases — could be levelled at a significant number of Premier League footballers seems not to dilute the special contempt in which Beckham is routinely held. Maybe the caricaturists have had something to do with it, with Beckham’s squeaky speaking voice an easy target for Fr Dougal-style lampooning. As it happens, there is scant evidence that Beckham is any less intelligent than a lot of his fellow professionals. And, as we watch a good many of them resorting to cliches in order to cope with the rigours of live television interviews just moments after the final whistle, we shouldn’t forget that, as young boys and men, they devoted themselves to a life in football not public speaking.
In truth, Beckham generally comes across in public as a sincere, affable and thoughtful individual, while the good humour with which he and his wife put up with being skewered by Ali G in that hilarious ‘Children In Need’ interview bespoke a level of self-deprecation at odds with the popular perception of them both as preening superstars. Sure they may have courted fame as assiduously as fame has courted them, but Beckham, at least, seems to have retained his essential humanity in the midst of all the madness.
But strip away all the money, the mags, the ads, the clothes, the branding and the luxury lifestyles in London, Madrid and LA, and we are still left with the most divisive issue of all — Beckham’s merits as a footballer.
His departure to America was supposed to have rendered this a matter of merely historical significance but it is once more at centre-stage in light of Fabio Capello’s decision to bring the player back into the squad for England’s friendly against France, a game in which Beckham, if picked, would become one of an elite band of five who have won 100 caps and more for their country. And he would be in heady company — the roll of honour features such all-time legends of the English game as Peter Shilton (125), Bobby Moore (108), Bobby Charlton (106) and Billy Wright (105).
In terms of his ability as a player, Beckham scarcely merits mention in the same breath as World Cup winners like Moore and Charlton. Indeed, perhaps one of the reasons Becks provokes such an intensely negative response in some people is that his supporters tended to overstate his talent to begin with. Hence, the exaggerated see-saw from hero to zero in the public mind.
A sober analysis of Beckham the footballer would surely conclude that he was, basically, a good player with two great attributes: in his prime there was probably no better crosser of the ball in world football and he was, at least, up there with the best when it came to free-kicks. But, beyond that, the kindest thing to say is that he is right to feel humbled in the company of Pele — or even, for that matter, in the company of his former Manchester United colleague, Roy Keane.
That Beckham is within touching distance of the magical 100 cap mark might therefore seem to say more about a decline in the quality of the English footballer than it does about his own less than stupendous talents as a player. But it also says something else — that Beckham is someone who prides himself on loyalty to the national cause. Would that it would always be so — the likes of Moore and Charlton would certainly have had it imprinted in their DNA. But in these days when club frequently trumps country and players are only too quick to retire from the international scene, Beckham’s commitment to England is laudable. Contrary to the usual take on Beckham, I reckon it’s one of the reasons why he can be regarded as an excellent role model for the kids.
And it’s not as if he hasn’t had opportunities — which others might have taken — to walk away: the national vilification after he was sent off in the 1998 World Cup; his emotional retirement as captain in 2006; Steve McClaren’s subsequent decision to drop him; the move to the MLS; and Capello’s decision to leave him out of the squad for his first game in charge against Switzerland.
But, at every twist and turn in his career, Beckham has made it clear that he regards it as the highest of all honours to play for his country.
And so, perhaps for the last time, perhaps not, the headlines this week will be all about Becks. Capello is no sentimental fool and, if he does pick Beckham, we can be pretty sure it will be for what the believes are sound footballing reasons. But the rest of us are entitled to take a somewhat more romantic view. Like the England rugby team who famously came to Lansdowne Road at the height of the troubles, Beckham might never have been the greatest in the world — but at least he showed up.
And a ton of caps would be nice a reward for his efforts.
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