David Beckham rolled back the years as 75,000 fans at Old Trafford braved monsoon conditions to see the former Manchester United and England superstar joined by famous friends to play his seventh match across the world in nine days.
And in a glimpse of the future when he temporarily left the field 15 minutes from the end, another Beckham No7 took his place, 16-year-old son Brooklyn.
The Great Britain vs Rest of the World ‘Match for Children’ was Beckham’s brainchild to mark his 10th anniversary of being an ambassador for international kids’ charity UNICEF.
And far from looking fatigued after travelling to every continent in the past nine days to play football, 40-year-old Beckham looked in great condition as he set up Class of ’92 pal Paul Scholes for the opening goal with a trademark cross.
It was reminiscent of the glory years under Sir Alex Ferguson, when United won the treble in 1999; a pin-point accurate cross from Beckham, finished off by legendary midfielder Scholes as the manager watched on from the touchline.
From then onwards, it was the Beckham show, delivering a string of quality crosses rarely seen in the current Premier League, watched on admiringly by his manager-for-the-day Sir Alex Ferguson.
David Beckham replaced by son, Brooklyn
Naturally, the thoughts of Friday night’s terrorist atrocity wasn’t too far from everyone’s mind on an afternoon meant to celebrate the joy of football.
French World Cup winners Zinedine Zidane and Patrick Vieira were late withdrawals from the Rest of the World team and fans were urged to get to the stadium early with security beefed up.
There was a minute’s silence with Beckham, Ronaldinho and Rest of the World manager Carlo Ancelotti looking particularly moved. All have worked in Paris during their career for Paris Saint-Germain.
There were stars-a-plenty on and off the field. Former United greats Ryan Giggs, …Read More
Source:: PM Newspaper
