'Stay at Man U' - Beckham told by father

England captain David Beckham’s possible move to Barcelona looked likely to cause family friction after his father said tonight: “I don’t want him to go.”

Ted Beckham said he had not been told that a deal was on the table and that he and his wife, Sandra, wanted their son to remain at Manchester United.

He said: “I shall tell him not to go there. I don’t want him to go.

“I want him to stay at Manchester United.”

Mr Beckham, 53, added: “I don’t want him to go just because a certain person wants him to go,” in an apparent reference to Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson.

Beckham has been at the centre of transfer speculation for months.

The England captain, married to former Spice Girl Victoria, and father of two boys, has reportedly been embroiled in a lingering dispute with Ferguson for months.

Earlier this year Beckham received a gash to the forehead when Ferguson lashed out in the dressing room and kicked a boot, hitting Beckham accidentally above the eye.

The manager later left him out of the starting line-up for two key matches, signalling he did not regard him as indispensable.

Rumours have also centred on which destinations would suit his pop star wife.

Beckham has evolved from a hate figure during the 1998 World Cup, when he was sent off during a match against Argentina, to style icon, devoted father and ambassador for the game.