David Beckham has described his career as one long rollercoaster ride, which fortunately had more ups than downs.
Beckham, who witnessed his under-whelming, injury-plagued start since returning to Galaxy from AC Milan, proved many critics wrong who thought that the England midfielder’s adventure in Los Angles would end soon.
“I’ve never really had a steady line throughout my career. It’s always kind of been a rollercoaster. I’ve had more ups than downs, of course, but there have been those moments that have been difficult. I’ve always felt that the best way to respond is to work hard and to play the game. Usually, that’s been good enough,” Beckham was quoted as saying.
“It’s worked out well with England, and I’d like to think I’ve proved people wrong. There are always going to be some critics saying this was a bad move, but being successful with the team this year has changed a few people’s minds, I’m sure,” he added.
He admitted that the lows have been as low as those he experienced earlier in his career — a national scapegoat after his sending-off at the 1998 World Cup, dropped from the England squad by Steve McClaren.
Being branded a “fraud” and “evil” on banners carried by his own supporters was tough, but just like previous occasions, he has turned it around by using criticism as a source of inspiration, as he demonstrated when confronting a Galaxy fan who abused him during his first match back in Los Angeles in July, a friendly against Milan.
“It was hostile, but I had it a lot worse in 1998. So it was a walk in the park compared to that. My family didn’t receive any abuse or anything like that, which was the one good thing. If my kids had been at school in 1998, I think it would have been a different story,” Beckham said.
