David Beckham
Ever fancied walking Waltham Forest council’s ‘Beckham Trail’, which takes in where your grandparents lived and where you went on cub camp?
Mosh, Clapham
When I’m in England, maybe, if I have time. I suppose it could be interesting and I’m sure I’ll remember the places. [FFT: Did you know you can get instructions in Spanish and Japanese?] Well, that’s nice for the Spanish and Japanese, isn’t it? I’ll stick to the English ones, though.
Young players these days seem to think they’ve made it as soon as they play in the first team. At what moment did you think you’d made it as a footballer?
Dave Rodgers, Bournemouth
I still look at myself and want to improve. I’ve done a lot of things in my career, I’ve been England captain, played for Man United, played for Real Madrid, but there wasn’t any point when I sat back and thought “I’ve made it” because I always had my dad telling me: “You haven’t made it yet. You’ve played 100 games for Man United but you still haven’t made it.”
That was the thing about United: we were brought up to believe that until you retire you don’t look back on your career. Until then, you’re always trying to better yourself.
Did you ever fancy copying Lee Sharpe and having a fan club at Discotheque Royale?
Steve Price, Sale
No, definitely not. I actually went to one of his events once. He invited me because I was in digs on my own. We used to hang around a bit. The event was crazy. Lee and Giggsy were The Two at the time. They were young, they’d both got into the first team, they had matching jeeps, which the manager wasn’t happy about, they were the cool ones.
What was it like to inherit the United No.7 shirt from a total legend like Cantona? Nerve-wracking?
Shaun Cooper, Wilmslow
The No.7 was the shirt at Manchester United for me. It has always been worn by amazing players and players who I’ve really looked up to – like George Best, like Eric Cantona, like Bryan Robson who I always wanted to emulate. I wore No.7 when I was young and to be given it at the time was very special, but nerve-wracking? No, I didn’t find it nerve-wracking.
When you look back at the way you were treated by fans around the country after the 1998 World Cup, how do you feel? Shocked? Upset? Can you laugh about it now, or does it still piss you off?
Stuart Roberts, via e-mail
It hurt at the time, but what I really think about when I look back to that time is the way Man United fans were to me. Every time I took a corner for two years – two years! – the United fans were on their feet, clapping me, cheering me, singing my name.
All I had to do was step towards the corner flag and they’d be doing that. That support was amazing. On the pitch, it made everything a lot easier. Being at a club that supported me the way it did after what had happened, and having the support of the fans, meant the world to me.
Which was better: scoring the last-minute free-kick against Greece to reach the World Cup or United’s last-gasp European Cup Final victory in 1999?
Simon Kirk, Orpington
[Puffs out his cheeks] I don’t think I could decide between the two. They were both such emotional moments.
Winning the European Cup like that was incredible. There had been so many twists and turns all year and to win all three trophies after such an emotional season, topping it off like we did in the last three minutes, was amazing. Looking back at it now, I still get goose bumps.
Scoring the goal against Greece was one of the best feelings I’ve had personally in football. Emotionally, it was incredible. But it was so personal with United as well because we’d all grown up together, we all wanted to win the biggest trophy in club football. We’d done it together...but the England thing was huge too.
What went wrong in your relationship with Fergie? You were so close for so long and then it seemed to fall apart... If you had your time again, would you do anything differently?
Sally Hawkes, Wilmslow
There’s not one thing I would change because I had an amazing time there with the fans, with the club, with the manager. Without them I wouldn’t be where I am today. They gave me the chance to fulfil my dream by playing for Man United. I respect that and I’m grateful to the manager for that.
There are always going to be ups and downs with managers and team-mates and that happened with the manager. It was well documented, more documented with me and the manager than between anyone else, and it got blown out of proportion.
When the club said they wanted me to leave, I was gutted. I can remember the last game at Old Trafford when I was supposed to have said “I’ve had talks” [he was filmed on the pitch at Old Trafford talking to Gary Neville]. What I said was, “They’ve had talks”. I hadn’t spoken to anyone – I had no reason to. I’d just won the league with Man United and I was assuming everything was fine.
I had not had one set of talks, not even when we played Real Madrid and I was dropped for that game. People were saying it then but I had never, ever spoken to anyone. Even the players at Real Madrid say to me now: “The deal was already done for ages wasn’t it? Because we got told.” And I say [exasperated laugh]: “No, no, it wasn’t.”
Have you ever eaten bull’s testicles?
Gary Rawlings, via e-mail
No. But I have eaten bulls’ ears. Grim? No – lovely, actually.
Who decides on your hairstyles: you or Victoria? Looking back, are there any you regret?
Andy Watts, via e-mail
[Immediately] Me. There’s none that I regret because [smiling a bit sheepishly] at the time I felt it looked good. Sometimes I wake up and I’m bored of my hair so I shave it all off. Today I’ve got long hair; tomorrow it could be short again. It depends on my mood.
[FFT: there isn’t one you look back on and think: Jesus Christ, what was I thinking?]. The Mohican. That’s probably one of the ones that I look back on and... [pauses] or the spike when my mum did it! That’s possibly the one. The worst one I’ve had wasn’t even my fault; it was my mum’s fault, so we’ll blame her [laughs].
What was the last thing that went through your mind when you took that penalty against Portugal? And the first thing that went through it when you missed?
Sarah Hendrie, Leeds
The first thing that went through my mind as I hit it was: “What happened?” Because, even when I kicked it, you could see the ground lift up considerably and I never strike balls as badly as that. For the ground to move like that was unfortunate. What went through my mind when I realised I’d missed was probably how I was going to get caned.
[FFT: And what about when you heard that a fan had caught the ball and was selling it on eBay?] It went for about £32,000 in the end. It’s one of those things that happens to me. Nothing amazes me anymore. I wasn’t at all tempted to buy it myself though – it could have been any ball. It might have been a snide!
What did Wayne Rooney say to you when you told him to calm down in the Northern Ireland match?
Ian Kemp, via e-mail
I think the papers got it pretty right, actually. It started with ‘f’ and ended with... [laughs]. He’d done the same to Rio and then did it to me. It was a frustrating time for the team but it’s not a problem. That happens in football and I’m not complaining.
I’d rather he reacted like that than not react at all. What did I say to him? Just “Play football”, I think. Wayne’s a strong personality, one of the best young players in the world. His personality is what makes him a great player, so I would rather he reacted like that to me than not react at all. It’s not a sign of disrespect; it’s a sign of passion and that’s great to see.
Are you the most famous person you know?
Georgie, via e-mail
Erm... no. Tom Cruise. He’s a lot more famous than me.
If Malcolm Glazer gave Alex Ferguson the money to buy you back, would you come? We’ll chuck in Carlos Queiroz in part-exchange...
Si Wilson, Leyland
Ha ha ha! Ooh, that’s a tough one! I don’t know. I’m happy at Madrid but I’ve always said that if I had to go back to England the only club I’d want to go back to is Man United. I’m happy here but you never know what could happen in the future.
What role in professional football, if any, do you envisage for yourself after you retire as a player? Are you taking your coaching badges? And if not football, what do you plan to do?
Daniel Mann, via e-mail
I definitely won’t be a manager. What interests me more than anything is my soccer academy. I’ve got one in London and one in LA and there are plans for others in different countries. That’s what interests me: coaching kids, teaching them about football and life.
My academy is different because of the classrooms where the kids can learn about football, about their bodies, about different aspects of the game. The kids learn about respect – for players, referees, supporters and in everyday life. So, that’s one thing, and being a Unicef ambassador is another. Those are going to be big parts of my life and I’ll also spend as much time as I can with my kids.
I’m a PE teacher and girls are really starting to get into football. If a girl was good enough, would you be in favour of her playing alongside you for England?
Jennie Bowmer, Alsager
Absolutely. I wouldn’t have any problems at all if she was good enough. For example, my academy is for girls and boys – that was one of the things I was adamant about.
I’ve always backed women’s football and we’ve already had girls coming down to the academy who have been very, very good. That shows the standard of women’s football in England. We’d need two dressing rooms of course but, hey, people think I have my own anyway!