His seizure of the limelight could well have provoked muttering of discontent among Stuart Pearce's London 2012 football party
When Barack Obama held a White House reception for David Beckham and his Los Angeles Galaxy team-mates in May, the president of the United States briefly seemed mildly taken aback. When talk turned to the prospect of Beckham playing for Stuart Pearce's Great Britain side in the Olympics, Obama reminded the England captain that he was old enough to have fathered several of his potential team-mates, most of whom are under-23.
Beckham is 37. At that age the majority of outfield players have long since retired, which is very possibly what the former Manchester United winger would have done a couple of seasons ago had he still been playing in the intensity of the Premier League rather than amid the sunnier, appreciably more relaxed, environs of California.
There are rare exceptions to this rule. At 38 Ryan Giggs still gets a game for United but at Old Trafford he is surrounded by younger, faster, fitter colleagues. In naming Giggs in his squad, Stuart Pearce, the GB coach, effectively left himself no option but to exclude Beckham. Two midfield slow-coaches would be one too many, especially if you aim to actually win the tournament.
Pearce travelled to California at least twice to watch Beckham in action, most recently a couple of weeks ago when, in Carson, he saw LA Galaxy beat Portland Timbers 1-0 in the MLS, with the winner created courtesy of a corner from guess who?
Although Beckham now suffers from a chronic lack of pace and mobility, even if he can still unleash a few Pirlo-esque passes, there was arguably a case for naming him in the squad on exceptional dead-ball ability alone. Giggs, though, is currently a bit more versatile – as well as possessing the added benefit of being Welsh and thereby bringing geographical balance to the squad.
His critics may question his tactics at times but everyone agrees that Pearce is refreshingly honest and very much his own man. Having watched Beckham in action he clearly decided he would not be right for his squad and that Giggs, Craig Bellamy and Micah Richards would make more impact as the three permitted over-age players.
In many ways the antithesis of the celebrity culture which surrounds modern football, Pearce is also the last person to have been swayed by Beckham's fame. Indeed he may instead have harboured real concerns about the media circus which invariably surrounds a man who appears to spend as much time modelling underwear and cosying up to politicians and royalty as actually playing football these days.
Although he is by all accounts a decent person and, in some respects, a fine role model, Beckham's celebrity can do strange things to delicate dressing-room eco-systems. Back in 2003 some England players were criticised for not bothering to accept an invitation to meet Nelson Mandela when they played a friendly against South Africa in Durban. In reality, those who stayed behind at the team hotel did so partly because they were fed up with the whole "Beckham circus" and questioned precisely why the meeting with Mandela had been engineered.
The same year Beckham joined Real Madrid from Manchester United. On the pre-season tour of the Far East, his new colleagues were clearly taken aback by the added scrutiny and generally craziness that his presence generated. When he and Luis Figo co-hosted a press conference in a Tokyo hotel, Beckham was ushered to an ostentatious gold throne and Figo to a normal chair placed to its side. The Portuguese was having none of it. "I am Luis Figo, I am the captain," he said, as, much to the horror of his Japanese hosts, he sat down on the throne and told Beckham to take the chair.
There may not be too many Figo-esque egos among Pearce's Olympic party but Beckham's seizure of every bit of available limelight could well have provoked a muttering of discontent. Moreover the potential chemistry between the LA Galaxy midfielder and the notoriously straight-talking Craig Bellamy – another overage Welshman in the squad very much on merit – may have proved combustible.
Pearce, being Pearce, would have overlooked such potential problems if he believed Beckham could prompt glory this summer. Instead he clearly feels that the extra midfield place could be more profitably utilised by a young player who will gain invaluable tournament experience.
Some potential spectators may be disappointed by Beckham's absence but after being excluded from the senior England coaching setup by Roy Hodgson and with his Under-21 system facing a tough looking European Championship finals in Israel next summer, Pearce cannot be worried about upsetting anyone. Moreover, in this age of spin, shallow celebrity and, above all, commerical greed, everyone should be grateful that the GB football team is being managed by a man of principle.
Beckham has enjoyed sufficient moments in the footballing sun, it is now time to offer someone else a turn. Read More
انسخ الكود التالى و ضعه فى موقعك او مدونتك.
