Football’s pin-up boy Beckham California dreaming
LONDON, England (AFP) — Football icon David Beckham said yesterday his love of the Californian lifestyle meant he was happy to stay in Los Angeles despite disappointment on the pitch and homesickness for Britain.
The 35-year-old England midfielder hinted at extending his stay in the United States when his contract at LA Galaxy ends in just over a year’s time, despite their elimination in the play-off Western Conference finals on Sunday.
“I haven’t thought what’s going to happen after that. As long as the kids are happy, wherever they are happy we will stay. We plan on staying here for a while, but we love going back to England as well,” Beckham told Britain’s ITV television.
“We were settled from the day that we moved here. It’s such a great place to live, such a great place to bring up the kids.
“We love London, that will always be our home without a doubt. We’ve still got a house there, we’ve still got all our families there.
“We miss that a lot, but we’ve lived here now for four years. To be able to pick the kids up from school and go to the beach or they can play in the pool.
“It is that kind of lifestyle. When the kids are as happy as they are that means you enjoy that.”
Having topped the league, Galaxy were beaten 3-0 by visitors FC Dallas in a shock play-off result Sunday to reach Major League Soccer’s championship match.
Former Manchester United, Real Madrid and AC Milan star Beckham, from east London, said his three sons now had “total American accents” but he did not mind.
“Throughout my career I’ve lived in Spain, Milan, Manchester for so many years, but I’ve never lost my East End accent and never will,” he said.
“I was putting Cruz in bed the other night and I said something to him, and he turned around and said: ‘Daddy you’re so English’, and I was like ‘so are you actually’.”
An injury kept Beckham from playing at this year’s World Cup in South Africa. England disappointed throughout and were knocked out in the second round.