DON'T FORGET, BECKS COULD PLAY!

ROBERT J WILSON REFLECTS ON THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A CERTAIN DAVID BECKHAM...

EVER since David Beckham lobbed Neil Sullivan from within his own half on the opening day of the 1995-96 Premier League season, noise has accompanied him wherever he has gone, be it Manchester, London, Paris, Milan, Asia or the United States.

He remains one of the most recognisable faces on the planet.

Alongside his former Spice Girl wife, the Posh one, arguably the world's most famous couple orchestrated the building of 'Brand Beckham' from the early days of their courtship.

Now they have accumulated a reported net worth of £425m according to the Sunday Times Rich List. Some believe that estimate to be rather conservative, too.

Dubbed the 'flash cockney' by his young Manchester United team-mates, Beckham always strategized to be much more than your average footballer. His handsome good looks, affable personality, celebrity wife and his football talent made him a dream ticket for marketers.

Beckham went from the fresh-face and hair of Brylcreem in the early 1990s to huge endorsement deals with Adidas, Armani, Pepsi-Cola and Gillette to name but a few.

He married Victoria Adams in the summer of Manchester United's treble-winning season and by that stage they were global superstars.

Beckham cleverly fuelled his appealing image with trend-setting hairstyles and fashion statements. He became the modern version of masculinity as society began to slide away from the lad-culture creation of the 'Loaded' era.

In its lucrative creation, Beckham wasn't too bothered in upsetting his disciplinarian of a club manager, Sir Alex Ferguson, by sporting a sarong or shaving his hair into a Mohawk.

Beckham was stubborn enough to be individualistic inside a tight-knit dressing room, but still talented enough to produce outstanding performances on a consistent basis.