30 January 2024 , 07:00
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Max Verstappen was left shocked at the way David Beckham was treated by England fans after his infamous 1998 World Cup red card against Argentina.
The nadir of Becks' football career was a major topic in his Netflix documentary Beckham, released last year. In it, the Manchester United legend admits he made a "stupid mistake" and declared: "I still beat myself up about it."
Verstappen won't remember the incident well - he was less than one year old at the time. But, speaking to Formule1.nl, the three-time Formula 1 world champion said he had seen the documentary and described it as "beautifully made".
And, regarding the episode which showed the backlash Beckham received from English fans following that red card in St Etienne, the Dutchman said he couldn't believe how harshly he was treated. He said: "That was really bad - you have those kinds of extremes more in football than in Formula 1. And certainly in England of course, where football is very popular.
"What I am experiencing is out of proportion to what he has experienced. In the documentary you saw how mentally strong he was. Because despite everything, he just focused on his career and training. And he often showed it again on the field and got everyone back on his side. I liked that, letting your feet do the talking on the field."
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As Verstappen alluded to, he has endured his fair share of public criticism during his own career. And some of that has come from British F1 fans due to his rivalry with Lewis Hamilton, particularly during and in the immediate aftermath of their closely-fought and controversial 2021 title race.
The Red Bull racer has spoken in the past about how he has been affected by that. And, when asked if it is a reason why, unlike many of his fellow F1 racer, he does not have a social media presence, he replied: "Yes - but I also feel like what I do in private is no-one else's business."
Verstappen was actually born and raised in Belgium but right on the Dutch border and spent most of his time in the Netherlands, his father's homeland. But despite that childhood living in the Limburg province, his footballing heart belongs to Eredivisie giants PSV.
Explaining his love for Eindhoven club, he said: "That started with my father when he was sponsored by Philips. At that time he was regularly invited to PSV matches and sometimes I accompanied him. Gradually a certain bond grows, a click, and you can also associate yourself with that club.
"PSV emotionally suits me better than, say, Ajax. The Amsterdam mentality is different from the Eindhoven warmth. And Limburg is of course also closer to Brabant, in terms of distance, but also in terms of mentality. I especially enjoy watching matches. I really try to follow all PSV matches, if I can manage it in terms of planning."