Beckham's Galactico adventure draws to a close

David Beckham was given the sort of reception more usually associated with a film star than a footballer when he arrived at the Bernabeu to sign for Real Madrid in June 2003.

A carefully choreographed affair, the presentation of the then-England captain took place in the full blaze of media publicity and came complete with branded photo opportunities, exclusive interviews and a special order of Real Madrid shirts emblazoned with his name and number.

Beckham, the most marketable player on the planet, was seen as the jewel in the crown of a galactico superteam that already included three of the biggest names in sport in Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane and Ronaldo.

The addition of the Manchester United midfielder would make the team invincible both on and off the pitch, according to then president Florentino Perez.

Real believed the midfielder's professionalism, hard work, passing and dead ball skills would ensure the team would add to its success after winning the league in 2003 and the Champions League in 2002.

Beckham's enormous pulling power in terms of marketing and publicity would guarantee the club an almost inexhaustible source of income which would allow Real to overtake his former side Manchester United as the richest team in world football.

Beckham certainly delivered on the financial side, with Real breaking into the lucrative Asian market thanks largely to his presence within their ranks.

But sporting success has deserted the nine-times European champions and they have yet to win any meaningful silverware since the Englishman arrived.

It would be wrong, however, to blame Real's recent failures entirely on Beckham's shoulders.

Although he was seen by many as being the ultimate expression of Perez's rather naive recruitment policy, the midfielder's work ethic, professionalism and team spirit were the antithesis of the so-called Galactico era.

He was determined to prove that he had not just been signed to boost shirt sales.

The truth, however, was that Beckham, who had turned down the chance to join Real's arch rivals Barcelona, had joined a team that was already in decline.

The departure of Fernando Hierro, midfield dynamo Claude Makelele and coach Vicente del Bosque had ripped the backbone out of a side that had increasingly become Perez's personal plaything and there was nothing that Beckham could do to stop the rot.

It started promisingly enough with Beckham scoring on his Bernabeu debut to help Real win the Spanish Super Cup and then grabbing another in his first league match against Real Betis. To date he has played 148 matches for Real in all competitions, scoring 19 times.

Beckham was asked to cover the gap left by Makelele in the centre of midfield and his willingness to sacrifice himself for the good of the team won him the admiration of the Real Madrid faithful.

But an under-strength Real squad just could not last the pace and imploded when it came to the business end of the season, losing in the final of the King's Cup against Real Zaragoza and self-destructing in Europe and the league.

At the same time Beckham underwent a parallel personal crisis sparked by personal assistant Rebecca Loos's lurid descriptions of an alleged affair with him.

His form was clearly affected and his season ended on a low when he was sent off for abusing a linesman in Real's penultimate match against Murcia, prompting many to comment that it was the first time the midfielder had made himself understandable in Spanish.

A disappointing display at Euro 2004 which included a calamitous penalty miss against Portugal further undermined his reputation, while the internal upheaval at Real did little to help.

Beckham had played under just one manager, Alex Ferguson, during his 14 years at Manchester United, but in the space of his first 18 months at Real the club got through five different coaches.

Hard working and professional, Beckham did his utmost to concentrate on his game.

But although he scored a handful of trademark goals from set pieces, his somewhat anarchic running around the pitch earned him the sobriquet "Forrest Gump" from one leading Spanish sports paper as Real ended another season without an honour.

Last season he restored some pride with a succession of accomplished performances in midfield, but his contribution was not enough to halt the team's downward momentum.

A recurrence of his back problems coincided with a poor end to the season and another disappointment with England at the World Cup.

His decision to resign the England captaincy was an honourable one, but there is little doubt that he was taken aback at the speed with which he was discarded by new boss Steve McClaren.

With the appointment of no-nonsense Italian Fabio Capello as Real coach at the start of this season, Beckham also lost his regularly starting place in the lineup and in leaks to the media the former Juventus boss made it clear that he did not view him as a key part of his future plans.

Clearly affected by the England snub and unhappy as a bit part player, Beckham stalled on contract renewal negotiations and announced he would leave to join L.A. Galaxy in the MLS in the United States.

Beckham became the leading icon in world football while at Manchester United, but ultimately the midfielder was unable to live up to the overblown publicity that accompanied his arrival at Real.