A howl of anguish from the football establishment has greeted Stuart Pearce's decision to leave David Beckham out of the GB squad for the Olympic football tournament.http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18624174
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18624174
I heard Danny Mills interviewed on the BBC about it and he was very scathing regarding Pearce, saying that he was frightened of being eclipsed by the greatness of Beckham.
I have to say that I have not in the past been too impressed by Stuart Pearce's managerial abilities - quite frankly he seems a bit thick. However, in this case I think it was a wise decision to leave out a 37-year-old professional who has been playing in the American league for a few years.
The critics like Gary Lineker and Danny Mills seem to be coming from the position that the Olympic football tournament isn't that important so it's worth picking Beckham because of his good work during the Olympic bid, his general wonderfulness etc. etc. This all seems bizarre to me. The purpose of entering a team for any football tournament must be to win it!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/18624174
I heard Danny Mills interviewed on the BBC about it and he was very scathing regarding Pearce, saying that he was frightened of being eclipsed by the greatness of Beckham.
I have to say that I have not in the past been too impressed by Stuart Pearce's managerial abilities - quite frankly he seems a bit thick. However, in this case I think it was a wise decision to leave out a 37-year-old professional who has been playing in the American league for a few years.
The critics like Gary Lineker and Danny Mills seem to be coming from the position that the Olympic football tournament isn't that important so it's worth picking Beckham because of his good work during the Olympic bid, his general wonderfulness etc. etc. This all seems bizarre to me. The purpose of entering a team for any football tournament must be to win it!
