For David Beckham, the incident at the 1998 FIFA World Cup where he was sent off would haunt him for the rest of his life. However, Beckham’s former teammate and one of Arsenal’s legendary goalkeepers has hit out at the referee in that game stating the red card the former England no.7 received “wasn’t a real red card”.
Beckham, who has been thrust back into the glare of the media following the release of his Netflix docu-series titled ‘Beckham’, has also spoken about how that incident was his darkest moment as a soccer player. And also that the media frenzy that followed led to him battling the backlash and finding solace in playing for Manchester United. But now, Beckham’s old teammate David Seaman has spoken out about the incident.
Beckham’s former England teammate David Seaman hits out red card incident at the 1998 FIFA World Cup
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In the World Cup Round of 16 of France ’98, Beckham appeared to kick Argentina’s Diego Simeone after he was fouled near the halfway line. Beckham retaliated by dangling out his leg in what was a soft but alleged kickout at the current Atletico Madrid boss. The referee then issued a red card for Beckham as England was eventually knocked out on penalties while Beckham became the focal point of widespread hatred across the nation.
Recounting the incident while speaking to TalkSport’s podcast, former England goalkeeper David Seaman recently spoke about Beckham’s red card and his views on it. On the show, while speaking to co-host Andy Townsend, Seaman said, “No not as bad as it was Andy, you know because when you look at the actual sending off it was so poor, I felt you know it was really harsh you know it wasn’t a real red card and the referee couldn’t wait to get his red card out and it affected the game.”
“You know okay we we took it to penalties. But the reaction from everyone you know the media the public you know it was really bad. And I experienced that obviously when I let the goal in against Ronaldinho. I was actually on the pitch thinking wow am I going to get treated Like Beckham did? Because of how harsh it was on Becks,” he added.
Beckham would, however, get his redemption by becoming England’s hero after scoring a vital free-kick for the Three Lions against Greece taking his country to the 2002 World Cup. But coming to current affairs, the Inter Miami owner has spoken about his former club Manchester United’s current predicament.
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David Beckham comments on the current state of Manchester United
In a recent interview after the release of his Netflix documentary, while speaking about the Red Devils, Beckham said, “Man United will always be Man United, they will always be one of the biggest clubs in the world. Now we need to get back to that for the fans, the players, the coaching staff, and the manager because at the moment there’s no stability.”
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His statement perhaps echoes the sentiment largely held amongst fans of the Old Trafford outfit, with regard to the club’s owners, the Glazers. The Inter Miami owner is also touted to become an ambassador for the club, should the potential Qatari owners come in. However, should Manchester United’s impending Qatar takeover materialize, it’s certain that the club’s fortunes could see a complete U-turn.
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