Beckham is one of the most popular players in the world.
`He is a great player, a great person and possibly the biggest sports personality in the world,` said coach Sven-Goran Eriksson – David Beckham’s teacher in the England team from 2001 to
`I don’t think there is any player more famous than him. He is a very, very qualified captain.`
`I remember every England match, every trip, from the airport to the hotel… Beckham was mentioned every time and everywhere.`
One of the things Eriksson – currently working as Technical Director of Al Nasr Club (Dubai) – remembers most about Beckham is the free kick scored in extra time against Greece in 2001, the goal that put England in the first place.
`David missed many free kicks that match, but still had the courage to take that free kick when the match was about to end and in the end he scored,` he recalled.
`This player’s biggest quality is that he is extremely professional in everything he does – and his right foot is not bad at all.`
Commenting on Beckham – who played 115 matches for the national team and is the only Englishman to score in three consecutive World Cup finals, former player Gary Lineker said: `He is a great player, a great player.
Gary Neville, Beckham’s best friend and companion at Man Utd and the England team, said: `He is probably the most influential English player on the outside.`
Beckham is probably a rare successful player in all aspects of the football world.
The 38-year-old England star’s former team-mate, Darius Vassell, added: `Really, in many ways he has never been forgotten in the world of football. A lot of young players aspire to be
`Off the field, he is also a big name,` former teammate at Man Utd, Andrei Kanchelskis, said: `He is a person with good taste, maybe Beckham will turn into a human in the future.`
Peter Taylor – who first gave Beckham the captain’s armband of the British national team in 2001 when he was interim coach – recalled: `I was impressed with the way he played and behaved after being sent off in the match.
Beckham has not been called up to the team since Roy Hodgson took charge last May, but the former West Brom coach hopes he will still be involved in football in other aspects.
`David is a multi-talented person and now there will be many people offering him different jobs. But I hope he continues to do something related to football,` he said.
President of the World Football Federation FIFA, Sepp Blatter, also did not hesitate to talk about the former player of Man Utd, Real Madrid, Milan and LA Galaxy: `David has grown from a child who loves football and achieved success.
* Beckham’s mark in the gaming world.
Doan Manh
