Bend It Like Beckham: The Making of a Football Phenomenon

When looking at the Beckham phenomenon, it is most important to look at the quality of the football player only. Beckham, as a footballer, has proved himself to be a considerable asset to both club and country.

His prodigious talent was apparent fairly soon. When he joined the Manchester Utd youth academy, he became one of the most prominent players. In 1995, he began to break through into the Utd first team ranks and helped them to the double.

In 1996, he scored one of the best Premiership goals ever seen against Wimbledon. From the halfway line, he chipped the ball over the goalkeeper and into the net. Comparisons with Pele would soon follow. Alas, for the rest of that season, he was a first-team regular and picked up his first Premiership winners' medal.

On the international stage, Beckham was winning his first caps for England and becoming a first-team regular. With England qualifying for the 1998 World Cup, Beckham would get his first chance on football's biggest stage. He mixed it with brilliance and controversy. Against Colombia, he scored an excellent free kick that would see England through to the 2nd round against Argentina. And then, when playing the Argentines, he was duly sent off for a clip on Simeone.

Still, the mixed World Cup undoubtedly highlighted his pedigree. His best-ever domestic season would soon follow with the FA Cup, Premiership, and Champions League triple. Again, he was a key component of the Utd midfield and scored important goals against the likes of Arsenal and Barcelona. Alas, more medals would follow with two more Premiership titles.

With England, under new management, he would really begin to flourish. Sven nominated Beckham for his first captaincy. And he delivered the goods once more by scoring a crucial late goal against Greece to see England qualify for the 2002 World Cup. At that tournament, he scored a penalty against Argentina, which would ultimately eliminate them and see England through to the next stage.

He won his last winners' medal with Utd in 2003 before Real Madrid began expressing an interest. This held sway, and he was sold for 30 million. Alas, closing the love affair with his former club.

If anything, the move to Real Madrid ensured he would still be in good playing company. With Zidane, Figo, Ronaldo, and co., they were the Spanish League Champions and had a formidable squad of players. In truth, in such a squad and without the history he had with Utd, his place in the first team was not such a formality.

After some trophy-less seasons, his last season delivered him a Spanish League title. Equally, he was more in favor of the new boss, Capello, and as such received his fair share of games.

With England, Beckham continued to feature prominently in the 2004 and 2006 competitions. In the World Cup, he scored for Ecuador with a typical free-kick goal. But later, with new management, he was partly sidelined, but then re-selected and produced some sound performances. He gained his 100th cap for England against France, a great achievement.

What made him such a good player was his exceptional crossing ability, combined with set pieces. The ability to generate ball spin, which could curve the ball sharply, befuddled goalkeepers the world over. Bend it like Beckham became a cliché. His work rate and technique were also good playing attributes. For a midfielder, he could play either on the flanks or in the middle. Not a typical winger by any means, but the delivery he can make from that position is invaluable to forwards.

Comparisons with Pele were made when he scored against Wimbledon. While as a player, he may not have reached that sort of level, at his peak, he was undoubtedly one of the best midfield players in the world, comparable with the likes of Zidane, Figo, Veron, etc. For England, he has been perhaps the best player of his generation, and his 100+ caps are a testament to that. No doubt, an England great like Hurst, Shilton, and his Utd counterpart Charlton.