French stars out of Beckham charity game
MANCHESTER — Tragic events in Paris led to French World Cup winners Zinedine Zidane, Patrick Vieira and Christian Karembeu pulling out of David Beckham’s “Match for Children” at Old Trafford.
The trio should have been among the star attractions of a ‘Rest of the World XI’ playing against a Beckham Great Britain and Ireland select side in aid of Unicef. But although two other French players in Robert Pires and former Manchester United player Mikael Silvestre did feature, organisers announced the three could not play following Friday’s terrorist attacks in Paris.
A statement read: “In light of the tragic events in Paris last night some of the players who were set to take part in today’s Match for Children at Old Trafford unfortunately were not longer able to participate. Our thoughts go out to the victims and families.”
Beckham said he supported Zidane’s decision to pull out of the game.
“I understood why Zizou took the decision not to play,” Beckham said in a news conference. “He was very respectful to me. I totally understand. He is a friend and a very passionate man. Being French, what happened hit him very hard. On behalf of myself, the managers and the players, we send our condolences to those who have lost loved ones.”
The former England captain said the match raised “a seven-figure” amount for Unicef, the beneficiaries of the Match for Children.
Beckham ended his playing career at Paris Saint-Germain, winning the title there in 2013, and he said the French capital has a place in his heart.
“I have great memories from Paris over the years, not just when I was with PSG,” he said. “I played my 100th game for England there and the support I had from the French people was amazing. I got a standing ovation. To go back as a PSG player and finish my career there, it has always been a special place.”
The match itself, after a minute’s silence in tribute to the Paris victims, lacked sparkle and was played in a subdued atmosphere as Great Britain and Ireland — a side incidentally lacking a single Irishman — won 3-1 in a front of a sell-out 75,381 crowd.
The sight of former United boss Sir Alex Ferguson back in the Old Trafford technical area, leading the home side was a sight to please many. So too was Beckham on the right wing and Ryan Giggs on the left with Paul Scholes prominent in midfield.
Beckham crossed when Scholes opened the scoring at Old Trafford, while Michael Owen added two more goals and Dwight Yorke struck for the Rest of the World XI.
He was substituted by Sir Alex Ferguson and replaced by his oldest son, 16-year-old Brooklyn, which made the day all the more memorable.
“One of my lasting memories of playing here was winning the Premiership and walking round with Brooklyn at 18 months,” he explained. “Having him out here today was a big decision, but I was very proud. It is difficult for him to get on my shoulders. Thankfully the manager thought it was something we should do.”
Beckham played seven games in seven continents over nine days as he raised funds and awareness for the children’s charity and said: “We achieved what we wanted to.”
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