David Beckham's personality summed up by Andriy Shevchenko story
Former Chelsea star Andriy Shevchenko has opened up on his friendship with one-time AC Milan teammate David Beckham as he recalled striking up a close relationship with him off the pitch.
The ex-England captain's glittering career took him to glamorous locations including Los Angeles, Paris and Milan following his departure from Manchester United. It appears the global icon particularly left his mark with his teammates at San Siro, with one story from his first loan spell at AC Milan showing the star's down-to-earth nature.
Beckham struck up an understanding with Rossoneri legend Shevchenko both on and off the pitch while they were both on loan at the club back in 2009. Recounting the period in his new book 'My Life, My Football', the Ukrainian football legend explained how he endeared himself to his colleagues.
Having moved to Milan on a temporary switch from parent club LA Galaxy, he was embraced by a host of the six-time European champions' greatest servants. The English superstar impressed his colleagues professionalism off the pitch in Italy, with this aspect of his character being one of his standout traits.
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Shevchenko recalled that Beckham's dedication to his sport was plain to see during his short first stay with Milan under Carlo Ancelotti. He explained: [Carlo] Ancelotti was still in charge, while on the pitch I could admire close-up the talent of Ronaldinho, an absolute phenomenon. In training, I saw professionalism taken to a different level by David Beckham.
"Those who didn’t know him spoke of his image, his wife Victoria, his obsession with looking good. The lucky ones who got to work with him every day spoke, instead, of an almost maniacal application, of a continual desire to raise the bar."
"Sweat and fatigue, running and exercises to raise the quality of a technique that was already ultra-refined. Beckham really was an example," he recounted, as he asserted his respect for the former England mainstay adding: "I appreciated the way he conducted himself and saw the role of a footballer."
David Beckham and Andriy Shevchenko struck up an understanding during their time together at AC MilanShevchenko and Beckham socialised off the pitch as well and the former told of an occasion in which he played football in the garden with Beckham, Alessandro Nesta and Beppe Favalli. In an amusing anecdote, he remembered the ball being kicked over the garden fence several times.
Describing the group as having been having fun 'like kids', he explained: "The house was on Via Ravizza, near to San Siro. One night, me, Beckham, Favalli and Nesta played a game of football in the small garden. Every now and then, the ball finished on my neighbour’s lawn on the other side of the wall.
"When this happened, we shouted ‘ball’ like you do when you’re a kid, but nobody responded. Luckily, we had a few back-ups. We weren’t exactly being quiet, and one or two shrieks may have slipped out. At a certain point, the doorbell rang. We looked each other in the eye, thinking ‘right, maybe someone is angry about the noise we’re making and has come to tell us’.
“Sure enough, when we opened the door, my neighbour was standing there. With four balls in his arms. He looked like a juggler and didn’t seem best pleased. ‘Excuse me lads, are these yours?’ Yes, Paolo…’ My neighbour was Paolo Maldini. We burst out laughing. We had just found a new participant for our impromptu game. ‘I’d like to play in defence, if possible…’."
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