David Beckham retains Real place

Real Madrid coach Fabio Capello, who last week backtracked on his decision to sideline US-bound David Beckham, has named the former England captain in his squad for February 17 match against Real Betis. Beckham marked the equaliser in Real's 2-1 win over Real Sociedad in the Spanish League match on February 10 that marked his return to the club after spending a month on the sidelines.
Beckham had been out of favour with Capello since he annouced he would leave Real Madrid to play for LA Galaxy in the United States once his contract with Real finishes at the end of this season.

Asked if he brought Beckham back into his starting line-up out of conviction or out of obligation, Capello said: "No one has ever forced me to do anything. I am a free man that makes up his own mind about things."


Real Madrid goalkeeper Iker Casillas said meanwhile that Beckham's return to the squad had given the team a boost.
"He is a great professional and the coach has realised that he is a very influential and very important player for the team," he said in an interview published in sports daily Marca.
"As a person he is an example for many. He was always respectful and polite throughout the situation in which he found himself," he added.

Thierry Henry and David Beckham on call for 2018 as World Cup bid gathers pace

Thierry Henry and David Beckham may be approached to act as ambassadors for England's 2018 World Cup bid if the FA decides to proceed with plans to bring the tournament to England for the first time since 1966.

England is well placed because most of the infrastructure is in place and public support is strong. Six stadiums already meet the Fifa requirements and a further five have been identified as possible venues.

Report also stresses that unlike the Olympics the bulk of the expense would be borne by football clubs. It is a mark of the concerns raised by the Olympic experience that the study repeatedly warns that the FA will have to provide "robust and realistic assessments of costs" to secure government support.

The bid, which gathered impetus yesterday with the publication of a feasibility study backed by Gordon Brown, would seek to enlist footballing "ambassadors" and Henry and Beckham are at the top of the list. Seb Coe, chairman of London 2012 and Fifa's ethics committee, could also expect to be approached.

Capello Admits Beckham Error, Says He Has Been Won Over.

Fabio Capello admitted that his doubts about Beckham's commitment and intensity had evaporated in the face of the Englishman's efforts, and declared that the only intelligent thing to do was to correct past mistakes.

"We had doubts if he would train with the same enthusiasm after that, but he has been working perfectly.

"He has also always had complete support from the rest of the team, and has behaved like a great professional, as a result of which, he now returns to the squad. said Capello during a press conference.

Don Fabio clarified that the decision was his alone - taken in the absence of pressure from anyone else - and honestly admitted that he might have rushed into punishing the former England skipper.

David Beckham will return to the Real Madrid squad after over a month, and for the first time since he signed his contract with Los Angeles Galaxy.

Beckham subjected to bitter attack from Real:

Real Madrid's president, Ramón Calderón, last night launched a bitter attack on David Beckham as the Englishman's final six months in Spain look set to descend into acrimony and recrimination. Beckham would like to negotiate an early departure from Madrid but that may prove difficult after the MLS commissioner Don Garber admitted LA Galaxy will struggle to find the money necessary to buy him out of his current contract.

If he is forced to stay, he will have little choice but to sit and suffer as a Bernabéu outcast - and, even if he succeeds in joining the LA Galaxy in time for the start of the MLS season in April, his departure will be wrought with bitterness. Not only has the coach Fabio Capello insisted Beckham will never play for the club again, but Calderón has now accused him of leading the club on.

"Beckham's representatives have toyed with us for the last two months. Whenever his representatives met Predrag Mijatovic they never informed him or the club that he had agreed a contract with another club," Calderón said. "They never told us that Beckham had made his decision, that he had bought a house in Los Angeles. I don't feel that it's right and I certainly don't like it.

Beckham is ready to move to LA Galaxy, David Beckham says he is moving to LA Galaxy to be "part of history".

David Beckham, who yesterday signed a £128m deal to move to Major League Soccer's LA Galaxy, has again insisted that he's not doing it for the money, but to be a "part of history".

"Of course it's a huge amount of money ... it's an amazing amount of money," Beckham told ABC News' Good Morning America. "I said yesterday and some people laughed at me, but this move for me is not about the money, it's about hopefully making a difference in the US with the soccer and that's what I'm going there for.

The five-year deal will see Beckham earn more than £70,000 a day - more than any player has ever earned. "I think soccer can be a lot bigger in the US. From a young age kids are brought up with soccer - they're brought up with soccer to a certain age and then they seem to go into other areas. Hopefully that's what I'll be there for, to pass my experience on to them.