- David Beckham was asked by Rio Ferdinand to name his ultimate 5-a-side team
- Beckham chose five big names, but only one Man United icon made the cut
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Manchester United icon David Beckham has named his ultimate 5-a-side team of stars he played with during his glittering career.
The former England captain has represented some of the biggest clubs in world football, including Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and PSG.
Beckham appeared on the Rio Ferdinand presents podcastand was asked by his old teammate to put together his dream team.
Starting with defense, Beckham opted for a back pair of Roberto Carlos and Paolo Maldini before selecting Zinedine Zidane in midfield, waxing lyrical about the Frenchman after playing alongside him in Madrid.
“Not only is he one of the best players I’ve ever played with, one of the toughest managers, and just plain cool,” Beckham said of Zidane.
David Beckham chose his dream 5-a-side team during an interview with Rio Ferdinand
Roberto Carlos (left) and Paolo Maldini (right) got the nod in Beckham’s defence
“He’s just cool, you know, without trying. You play him a ball, anywhere on the pitch, at any height, at any level, at any speed, he brings the ball down like it’s just one of those things he does.
‘People literally came to the Bernabeu to see him just controllable. Because it was like watching a ballerina, the way he plays is so elegant. Everything about him is elegant.’
Another former Madrid star was chosen to take charge as Beckham joined Brazilian Ronaldo and revealed he was impressed with the striker in training.
“I think when you see Ronnie play back in the day, I mean he’s exciting on every level,” Beckham continued.
“One of our first training sessions was in Korea, I think, or China, I’m not sure where we were at the time. And the ball had just been played to him and all he had to do was put it in the goal. And while it’s being played to him, I’m trying to defend it.
Beckham chose Zinedine Zidane in midfield and showed how hard the Frenchman trained
Another Real Madrid icon, Brazilian Ronaldo, was picked by Beckham to take charge
‘So I slid across and as I slid across I thought he was just going to play it into the goal for the first time, and as I slid across he just put his foot on the ball, and as I’m sliding by he just looks at me like that with the biggest smile on his face and he just taps it and I’m like, oh god! Wow!’
It seemed Beckham was about to name a team without a single United player in it, despite spending more than a decade at the club after rising through the academy as a member of the Class of ’92.
But Beckham eventually managed to get a United legend on his side as he opted for his former captain Roy Keane, who praised the standards the Irishman set at Old Trafford.
“You need a leader and someone who actually tackles and fights and is the player that he is, so I have to say Keaney,” Beckham said.
Roy Keane (right) was the only Man United legend picked by Beckham (left)
“He didn’t take a day off, and I don’t mean the physical meaning of a day off. I mean, every day he stepped onto the training pitch, he wanted to win. He inspired us every day because he came in with that mentality and we all knew we had to deal with that.
“That’s the level we have to reach and that’s why Keaney was who he was because he was a winner, he was hungry and he always wanted to win.”
Listen to the full Rio Meets Becks interview on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. RioFerdinandPresents.com