Beckham yearning for move after cup exit
Manchester United's David Beckham breaks into a smile as he runs to take a corner during the Premiership match against Liverpool at Old Trafford in Manchester 05 April 2003.
AFP PHOTO/Adrian DENNIS
LONDON (AFP) England captain David Beckham is seeking a way out of Manchester United amid mounting speculation that he will be off to join Real Madrid's star-studded squad this summer, media reports said Friday.
Beckham was furious to find himself starting on the substitutes bench for last Wednesday's Champions League thriller against Real Madrid, who edged out United 6-5 on aggregate despite a 4-3 loss at Old Trafford in which 'Becks' scored twice in his half-hour appearance.
Manager Alex Ferguson started with Norwegian forward Ole Gunnar Solskjaer instead of Beckham and insisted afterwards he was happy with his tactics but Friday's British press were adamant a parting of the ways is now inevitable.
"Becks: Get me out of United," was how The Sun tabloid headlined a front page story in which it asserted Beckham had had talks on his future with agent Tony Stephens minutes after the match, adding the star had left Old Trafford in tears.
"End it like Beckham," the paper headlined another two-page story, as it insisted the 27-year-old Beckham skipper had come to the end of his "love affair" with the club.
The Daily Mail showed Beckham trudging through the rainy streets of Manchester the day after his team's cup exit and likewise suggested a change of club was on the cards.
"Becks is so upset he just has to go shopping again, the Mail explained, informing its readers the star had shelled out on three shirts, a jacket and two pairs of trousers.
Although the gear came from an Italian fashion designer and although Beckham's wife Victoria has long been rumoured to fancy a move to the sunnier climes of Italy, Real see Beckham, worth an estimated 75 million dollars, as the man to turn them into a global brand like no other signing.
How the Spanish giants would fit yet another superstar into their ranks is another question entirely but Real could dangle one of their current squad, such as Portugal midfielder Luis Figo, as bait while additionally offering United a huge cashpile to get their man.
Relations between Beckham and Ferguson have been strained recently, the latter having accidentally caught Beckham in the face after kicking a boot across the dressing room in February following an FA Cup loss to Arsenal.
The resulting wound required stitches.
Ferguson also left the England captain out of a crucial Premiership encounter with title rivals the Gunners earlier this month.
Real believe a deal is worth doing commercially given the huge spin-offs they could reap in marketing terms, while in sporting terms Beckham could theoretically just squeeze into the right hand side of a midfield already staffed by Zinedine Zidane and Figo, supplying his trademark crosses for Raul and Ronaldo in attack.
United's Spanish goalkeeper Ricardo revealed earlier this month that Beckham, who has two young sons, Brooklyn and Romeo, had been asking him about the quality of schools in Madrid, fuelling speculation on a move.
Real president Florentino Perez has meanwhile been quoted as saying he wants to "copy and beat United" in commercial terms.