TF90M’s Italian Football Correspondent, Marzia Hazra, reports on the arrival of David Beckham in Italy and apologises to the former England skipper for her early skepticism…
Before David Beckham arrived at AC Milan I couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about or why Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani was so smug. As far as I was concerned the once so brilliant midfielder had damned his career by switching to LA Galaxy in the summer of 2007.
I just couldn’t see the midfielder making an impact during the mere three month loan-spell and I’m sure a lot of folks lifted their eyebrows in amazement when the deal was finalised.
Just like so many others, I simply thought that there was no place for Beckham at AC. Besides, he was only in Milan to stay match-fit so he would be eligible to play for England.
Not only that, my annoyance with Milan was steadily increasing as it seems in recent years that the club almost refuses to acquire the services of a player under the age of 30. Oh, how I was to regret saying that.
Five appearances later and I’m eating my own words. David Beckham has exceeded all expectations and to make it worse he did it in just a handful of games. Although everything about Galliani radiates a big “I told you so”, I’m sure that even he didn’t expect this kind of success in such a small span of time.
The midfielder is a major factor to Milan leapfrogging Juventus to second place in the table and keeping Inter at a close range.
Although Beckham’s debut was overshadowed by the “Ricardo Kaká to City” saga, the Englishman has since then successfully re-directed the lights towards him – and not by Brand Beckham, but by his displays on the pitch.
Becks broke his Serie A duck with a magnificent lift from a tight angle in the 4-1 win against Bologna. The Englishman then went on to score another stunner in the following game against Genoa where he curled a trademark free kick from an “impossible” angle into the near corner – right in front of the eyes of England coach Fabio Capello who was sitting in the stands watching.
Beckham didn’t end there. Last Sunday he showcased his true brilliance as he masterminded Milan’s 3-0 thumping of Lazio in Rome. With his clever play the midfielder set up not less than three goals – one of which disallowed for offside – as he played the role of playmaker.
Instead of using speed, which with the rising age usually decreases, Becks uses intelligence in his style of play – and that fits perfectly to the more relaxed pace of Serie A where speed, still an admirable quality, is not the most important. No one can argue that his pin point whipped crosses and trademark free kicks have swayed in quality over the years.
In less than a month the no 32 has managed to become an integral part of the Milan team and in doing so he has managed to push one of the club’s most important signings of last summer – Ronaldinho – to the bench in five consecutive games.
Beckham’s presence on the pitch brings another level to the game while it also lifts a huge amount of weight off the always overloaded shoulders of playmaker Andrea Pirlo. It’s easy to see that the Englishman is enjoying life in the fashion capital and it reflects perfectly on his game.
At a time when Inter are struggling with inconsistent form and Juventus with an alarming rate of injuries, Milan probably have the best shot at the Scudetto – and I would count on Beckham to be playing a key-role.
The midfielder’s growing importance at the club has made Galliani vow that Milan will do everything in their power to keep the player considering that Beckham and wife are leaning along the same lines.
"I know I have a contract that binds me to the Los Angeles Galaxy, but I wish to remain at Milan after the end of my current agreement. I express my desire to remain here because I am doing very well with the team and the coach. I feel a lot of love from the fans." stated the 33-year-old after the friendly against Glasgow Rangers on Wednesday night.
The midfielder is back on the European stage and that is precisely where he belongs and I would be very sad indeed if he has to go back to the US and LA Galaxy. Therefore, I personally hope that David Beckham makes his move to AC Milan permanent.
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