The King's Return: Beckham Answers His Critics with a Brace!
Battle of England's Midfield Generations: Beckham Outshines Lampard!
Beckham Is Back to His Best, but England No Longer Has a Place for Him!
The following morning, newspapers across Britain and Europe devoted prominent space to Beckham's two-goal performance at Stamford Bridge. The Guardian even ran two photographs side by side, one showing Beckham celebrating with the travelling supporters as he left the pitch, the other capturing Lampard's dejected expression after the final whistle. Above them was a simple headline: "England, Who Do You Need?"
There was little argument over the best player in the match. Beckham had scored both goals, but his influence went far beyond the scoreline. He had also produced a series of excellent passes, three of which created chances that Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi, and Villa failed to convert. Had the finishing been sharper, New Manchester United's margin of victory could easily have been greater.
Beckham had also excelled in the less spectacular parts of the game. His organisation, control of tempo, defensive work, and positional discipline were all outstanding. His defensive statistics were particularly impressive, and in several direct confrontations with Lampard he had clearly come out on top.
Martin Samuel was blunt in his assessment of Lampard's performance. Once Deco and Verón had been denied the time and space to organise Chelsea's midfield, Lampard had been unable to assume responsibility for controlling the team himself. Instead, he spent much of the match running from one area to another without ever exerting real influence.
"So many people describe Lampard as a complete midfielder," Samuel wrote, "but the truly complete midfielder at Stamford Bridge was Beckham. He could arrive from deep and score, stay behind the ball and dictate possession, support attacks, drop back to protect the defence, and move across either flank when his teammates needed cover. That was the real David Beckham."
There were, inevitably, people who defended Lampard and continued questioning Beckham. Their argument was that Chelsea as a whole had been tactically suppressed, so it was unreasonable to expect one midfielder to reverse the game alone, especially when Lampard was facing De Rossi and Essien, two of the strongest ball-winning midfielders in the Premier League.
Some also tried to diminish Beckham's performance by highlighting the handful of mistakes he had made during the match, as though an excellent performance somehow required absolute perfection.
New Manchester United ignored the debate. Neither Mourinho nor the club responded publicly. Their attention had already shifted to the midweek Champions League fixture.
It would be the first Champions League match in New Manchester United's history, and their opening group-stage opponent was Portuguese powerhouse Porto.
Before the draw in early September, there had been considerable speculation over which European giant the Red Rebels might face. The media naturally hoped for the most dramatic possibilities. New Manchester United might have been Champions League newcomers, but they had won the UEFA Cup in consecutive seasons and followed that by winning the Premier League unbeaten. Nobody could seriously question their strength.
They had also developed a reputation for being one of the most awkward opponents in Europe. Lazio, Juventus, Valencia, Barcelona, Manchester United, Liverpool, and Arsenal had all discovered how difficult Mourinho's side could be.
By now, few established clubs were eager to draw them.
Before the groups were announced, Mourinho had been asked whether he feared landing in a difficult section.
"I don't care who we draw," he replied. "Put three seeded teams in our group if you like. The important question isn't whether we are worried about our opponents. It's whether they are happy about playing us. I don't think many teams in Europe will be."
In the end, his confidence was barely tested.
New Manchester United were placed in Group H alongside Porto, CSKA Moscow, and Sparta Prague.
Compared with groups containing fixtures such as Juventus against Bayern, Real Madrid against Bayer Leverkusen and Roma, Inter against Valencia and Werder Bremen, or AC Milan against Barcelona, Group H looked relatively modest.
CSKA Moscow and Sparta Prague were not expected to match the strength of Porto or New Manchester United, so most predictions were straightforward. Barring a major surprise, Porto and the Red Rebels should advance. The more interesting question was which of them would finish first.
That mattered because the group winners would be drawn against runners-up from another section and would play the second leg of the first knockout round at home.
Mourinho therefore made his objective clear.
New Manchester United were to win the group.
Still, this was their Champions League debut, and Porto were too experienced to be treated casually.
The Portuguese side had lost several major players during the summer, including Deco, Ricardo Carvalho, and Paulo Ferreira, and were weaker than the team of the previous season. Even so, they still possessed players such as Pepe, Luís Fabiano, Maniche, and Benni McCarthy, which made them dangerous enough to punish any complacency.
Mourinho had prepared thoroughly. Kaká and Drogba had both been protected during the Chelsea match partly so they would be fresher for Porto.
For the first Champions League night in the club's history, every seat in the stadium was filled. The noise began long before kick-off, with supporters bringing flags, banners, scarves, and every other form of colour they could fit through the turnstiles.
Kaká and Luís Fabiano had known each other from São Paulo and remained on good terms, so the two spent several minutes talking in the tunnel before the match. Fabiano knew plenty about New Manchester United and had watched Kaká's reputation grow rapidly during the club's rise through Europe.
At one point, he had even hoped to join the Red Rebels himself. Their forward line had simply been too crowded, and no opportunity ever materialised. Porto had instead given him the platform he needed, and he was now an important member of their attack.
Friendship ended once the whistle blew.
Mourinho again used a 4-2-3-1. Drogba returned as the centre-forward, with Ribéry and Robben on the wings and Kaká behind him. Beckham partnered Essien in central midfield. Lahm, Vidić, Curtis, and Kolo Touré formed the back four, with Čech in goal.
The line-up contained several changes from Stamford Bridge, but there was no lack of understanding. Most of these players had been working together for more than two years and were completely familiar with Mourinho's tactical demands and one another's habits.
At home, New Manchester United attacked from the opening minutes. Porto's summer departures were immediately noticeable. Without Deco, their build-up lacked the same control, while the defence no longer possessed Carvalho's assurance.
Pepe, at this stage of his career, was still developing into the elite centre-back he would eventually become, and his partnership with Jorge Costa struggled badly against Drogba's strength and movement.
Porto's full-backs had no easier time. Ribéry and Robben were lively from the start, repeatedly stretching the defence and driving into the spaces outside the centre-backs.
By half-time, New Manchester United led 2-0.
Kaká scored the first.
Drogba added the second.
Beckham created both.
The captain had carried his Stamford Bridge form straight into Europe, delivering two assists and several other dangerous passes that came close to producing more goals.
Mourinho saw no reason to change anything at the interval. New Manchester United were stronger, their pressing was working, and Porto had shown little ability to escape the pressure. Rather than protect the lead, he told his players to keep attacking.
The Red Rebels responded by showing their teeth again after the restart.
In the 61st minute, Drogba held the ball up under pressure and laid it into Essien's path. The Ghanaian met it with a thunderous strike from distance that flew beyond the goalkeeper.
3-0.
Then, in the 74th minute, Beckham produced the moment of the night.
A move down the flank ended with the ball being pulled back towards him outside the penalty area. Beckham carried it forward through the centre, shifted past Maniche, continued into the box, and finished clinically.
4-0.
The stadium erupted.
Beckham ran towards the stands and raised both arms, urging the supporters to make even more noise. They needed little encouragement. The volume rose again as thousands of voices chanted his name.
Since the start of the season, New Manchester United had played five Premier League matches and one Champions League fixture. Beckham had already recorded five goals and six assists.
He was not merely in good form.
He had become the team's most influential player.
His response to international retirement had been remarkable. In the two matches since announcing his decision, he had scored three times and supplied two assists, leading New Manchester United to victories over Chelsea and Porto.
Before the season, very few people would have predicted that Beckham could become the club's most decisive attacking influence. He was, after all, supposed to be the deep-lying organiser rather than one of the main scorers.
Yet his performances had been extraordinary and, more importantly, remarkably consistent. Almost every match seemed to contain a decisive contribution.
After the Porto victory, even sections of the English media that had criticised him most aggressively began reconsidering the reasons behind his struggles with the national team. If Beckham could control matches against Chelsea and Porto at this level, perhaps his poor international performances had not simply been evidence of decline.
At the same time, discussion around the year's major individual awards began intensifying.
Beckham was emerging as one of the leading candidates for both the FIFA World Player of the Year and the Ballon d'Or.
His case rested largely on consistency. He had been central to New Manchester United's unbeaten Premier League title the previous season, and his start to the new campaign, with five goals and six assists, had strengthened the argument considerably.
Ronaldinho was another major contender. Barcelona's Brazilian had been brilliant during the second half of the previous season, helping drive his team back into contention in Spain. Barcelona ultimately fell short of the title, and Ronaldinho had been largely contained in the UEFA Cup final against New Manchester United, but his overall influence remained undeniable.
Beckham's biggest weakness in the comparison was his international record.
England had gone out of Euro 2004 in the quarter-finals, and Beckham's missed penalty remained one of the defining images of the elimination. His performances in the opening World Cup qualifiers had also attracted heavy criticism before his retirement.
Ronaldinho, by contrast, remained one of Brazil's central stars and had continued producing strong performances internationally.
Thierry Henry and Andriy Shevchenko were also prominent candidates. Henry remained Arsenal's most important attacking player, while Shevchenko's nomination rested largely on his outstanding final season with Milan before moving to Chelsea. His excellent start in England only strengthened his position.
Nobody yet knew who would eventually win the major awards.
What was becoming increasingly difficult to dispute was that Beckham was playing some of the best football of his career.
Three days after dismantling Porto, New Manchester United returned home to face Newcastle.
Beckham was even better.
He scored twice and provided three assists as the Red Rebels destroyed Newcastle 5-0.
Cristiano Ronaldo scored once.
Kaká added two.
Beckham had been directly involved in every goal.
And this was only the beginning.
(To be continued.)