David Beckham vs Trent Alexander-Arnold

TheNewEra

Knows Kroos' mentality
Joined
Jan 20, 2014
Messages
8,230
Beckham was a lot better than some give him credit for, especially opposition fans.

Issue is people don't see past his celebrity status at times.

He was one of the most hardworking players who fights for his team, and he was a player that never seemingly underperformed.

Beckham was everything you would want in a captain, never stops chasing the ball, and when he had it at his feet he was one of the best crossers and passers I've seen.

TAA and becks are just not comparable.
 

90 + 5min

Full Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
Messages
5,229
Alexander-Arnold is very, very good player. If we look at this season and season before. Excellent right foot and football brain.

But to say he is better than Beckham? In what way? People are to often obsessed who is better or worse. First and most, they don't even play in same position or same system. Second, when Alexander-Arnold achives what Beckham have during his career we can talk. Third, social media brings you all kind of people and everyone have different opinions. Even those whos knowledge about football is questionable.
 

Adam-Utd

Part of first caf team to complete Destiny raid
Joined
Sep 10, 2010
Messages
39,954
TAA has a fantastic freekick technique, but let's see him do it for 10 years with the whole country baying for his blood :lol:

The mentality Becks showed after 98' is a testament to just how good he really was.

Let's be honest these journalists haven't watched Beckham for a long time, recency bias is definitely a thing.
 

Irrational.

Full Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2011
Messages
32,917
Location
LVG's notebook
Typical of the modern day sensationalist bandwagon gutter press.

TAA has had what - one and a half good seasons under a single (world class) manager, who plays every one of his players to their strengths? This is the same manager that made Pisczcek and Błaszczykowski look like world beaters.

Come back to me when he's managed that level of consistency for several seasons and can produce the same goods for other clubs/ managers who may not allow the same freedoms.
 

Gio

★★★★★★★★
Joined
Jan 25, 2001
Messages
20,334
Location
Bonnie Scotland
Supports
Rangers
#07 said:
Do you really believe that? You don't think the wining, dining, schmoozing and access for journalists has no impact on how they vote for the Ballon d'or?

The award is not for the best player but for the best season. We eliminated Barcelona from the Champions League in the group stages. Rivaldo did brilliantly domestically but Beckham was the key cog to us dominating at home and abroad in 1998-99. He should have won the Ballon d'or, the UEFA award was a consolation prize.
Click to expand...
But the irony here is that Rivaldo was shy and did not court the media's attention. If anything the fact he won, despite not having the public profile of Beckham, or Zidane and Ronaldo before him, is testament to how well he played on the park. Not that I'm underestimating Beckham's level that year, he was phenomenal and doesn't get the credit he deserves, especially for dominating the semi-final in Turin.

Either way, it wasn't even close - Rivaldo won it by miles. Comfortably won the Ballon D'Or, was way ahead in the FIFA World Player of the Year award, won the Onze D'Or, and even in the Anglocentric World Soccer Magazine he won more of the vote than any other winner between 1988 and 2007.

He had a hugely influential season for club and country. 29 goals in 48 games for Barcelona from a deeper position, comfortably winning the league and almost single-handedly putting Barcelona within a ball-hair of knocking out United, despite having a shambolic defence behind him. For Brazil he was the star of the Copa America, voted player of the tournament, outperformed a pre-injury Ronaldo, and scored in the quarter-final, semi-final and final.
 

#07

makes new threads with tweets in the OP
Joined
Oct 25, 2010
Messages
23,305
Gio said:
But the irony here is that Rivaldo was shy and did not court the media's attention. If anything the fact he won, despite not having the public profile of Beckham, or Zidane and Ronaldo before him, is testament to how well he played on the park. Not that I'm underestimating Beckham's level that year, he was phenomenal and doesn't get the credit he deserves, especially for dominating the semi-final in Turin.

Either way, it wasn't even close - Rivaldo won it by miles. Comfortably won the Ballon D'Or, was way ahead in the FIFA World Player of the Year award, won the Onze D'Or, and even in the Anglocentric World Soccer Magazine he won more of the vote than any other winner between 1988 and 2007.

He had a hugely influential season for club and country. 29 goals in 48 games for Barcelona from a deeper position, comfortably winning the league and almost single-handedly putting Barcelona within a ball-hair of knocking out United, despite having a shambolic defence behind him. For Brazil he was the star of the Copa America, voted player of the tournament, outperformed a pre-injury Ronaldo, and scored in the quarter-final, semi-final and final.
Click to expand...
The players don't do the campaigns themselves. The clubs do it. Didn't you see Cristiano sulking at Madrid when he felt the club didn't do enough to push his candidacy for individual awards? Manchester United do not have, and have never had, that level of influence amongst the eligible voters for the Ballon d'or. For all our global profile we are a club from a mostly working class, industrial city in the North of England on the north edge of Europe. We're nowhere near as plugged into the Romance language networks that Barcelona and Real Madrid are.

We'll agree to disagree on who had the better season. For me inspiring your team to win the treble, in the same season England fans lynch effigies of you and your family and boo your every touch, is a pretty much untouchable achievement. Even if Beckham didn't score an overhead kick from the edge of the box.
 

Superunknown

Full Member
Joined
Aug 4, 2019
Messages
8,347
RC89 said:
I hate how underrated Beck's can be at times. Yes, he was overrated by some at the time but to compensate a lot underrate him. He'd be our best player in this team arguably and most consistent. Also, we'd finally get some decent corners in.
Click to expand...
Beckham is crossing over that line for me and is now becoming underrated amongst most people. It seems as if he is now being remembered for his life outside of football, his charity work, his famous wife, etc. He was a fecking amazing footballer and would look brilliant in our team right now. Brilliant player. His crossing and free kicks. :drool:
 

Rob

Full Member
Joined
Nov 10, 2009
Messages
3,225
Supports
Liverpool
It really doesn’t make sense comparing a 21-year old RB to a right winger with the trophy cabinet of Beckham - just like it never made sense comparing this Liverpool side to the dynasties of United. Not yet.
 

Demyanenko_square_jaw

Full Member
Joined
Jan 29, 2017
Messages
1,055
#07 said:
The players don't do the campaigns themselves. The clubs do it. Didn't you see Cristiano sulking at Madrid when he felt the club didn't do enough to push his candidacy for individual awards? Manchester United do not have, and have never had, that level of influence amongst the eligible voters for the Ballon d'or. For all our global profile we are a club from a mostly working class, industrial city in the North of England on the north edge of Europe. We're nowhere near as plugged into the Romance language networks that Barcelona and Real Madrid are.

We'll agree to disagree on who had the better season. For me inspiring your team to win the treble, in the same season England fans lynch effigies of you and your family and boo your every touch, is a pretty much untouchable achievement. Even if Beckham didn't score an overhead kick from the edge of the box.
Click to expand...
Keep in mind winning the English league wasn't as highly regarded in the 90s, it didn't start getting back into being one of the top 3 coefficient leagues until a season or two later in the 00s. I think it was still around about 5th or 6th for 98 and 99, while Spain was in the top 3.
 

Pogue Mahone

The caf's Camus.
Joined
Feb 22, 2006
Messages
133,880
Location
"like a man in silk pyjamas shooting pigeons
TAA is probably better now than Becks was at the same age. So it’s far from outrageous to predict that he could go on to be the better player of the two.

Although it’s obviously stupid to make any sort of definitive comparison between a player who is a long way short of his potential and the finished article with a long successful career at the highest level, in three different countries.
 

Lee1001

New Member
Newbie
Joined
Oct 23, 2016
Messages
10
Can we assume that since the debate has turned in this direction that everyone now agrees that TAA is better than AWB?
 

Gio

★★★★★★★★
Joined
Jan 25, 2001
Messages
20,334
Location
Bonnie Scotland
Supports
Rangers
#07 said:
The players don't do the campaigns themselves. The clubs do it. Didn't you see Cristiano sulking at Madrid when he felt the club didn't do enough to push his candidacy for individual awards? Manchester United do not have, and have never had, that level of influence amongst the eligible voters for the Ballon d'or. For all our global profile we are a club from a mostly working class, industrial city in the North of England on the north edge of Europe. We're nowhere near as plugged into the Romance language networks that Barcelona and Real Madrid are.

We'll agree to disagree on who had the better season. For me inspiring your team to win the treble, in the same season England fans lynch effigies of you and your family and boo your every touch, is a pretty much untouchable achievement. Even if Beckham didn't score an overhead kick from the edge of the box.
Click to expand...
I accept all that, but I just disagree that it wasn't based on merit, when - leaving aside his performances on the pitch - he won all these other awards, and by a long way as well. And it was a different time too before it grew into a political monster between the big two and before fandom changed when fans were team-orientated as opposed to fans of individuals, which has become much more the case in the last decade or so.
 

Pablo18th

New Member
Newbie
Joined
Jun 23, 2020
Messages
108
GifLord said:
He never was a winger to begin with. He was a cm that was converted to a side midfielder - with defending and attacking duties
Click to expand...
Exactly he was a Right Midfielder most of the time for us and England and a CM everywhere else.

He also had one of the best "big game mentalities" of all time.
 

Ekeke

Full Member
Joined
Aug 1, 2006
Messages
53,283
Location
Hope, We Lose
Its hard to compare them because Beckham was RM and Trent is a very attacking RB. I dont think Beckham had the pace to play the role TAA plays for Liverpool though
 

90 + 5min

Full Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
Messages
5,229
DavidDeSchmikes said:
Click to expand...
It seems it doesn't take much to be football writer these days. More talented? More to his game? As I said earlier, on social media everyone can be expert.

The other guy calling Beckham one trick pony? Guys really need to watch some games. Beckham is or have been very underrated player. But I understand. If you are a Liverpool fan you feel that right now that every player is better than anyone else. Soon we will be hearing how Mane is better than Messi or Ronaldo.
 

Paul_Scholes18

Full Member
Joined
Sep 13, 2014
Messages
13,891
It is hard to compare since they have different roles in the side. Tactics have changed and they play for sides with different qualities.
Beckham proved his quality over longer times and TAA is very new into football.
Obviously for us here Beckham will be bigger and he won many more titles.
Still in the future history might look at these things differently. After all Beckham only won CL once so TAA can sadly do more with Liverpool.
England might also win a big cup so that will put TAA higher up too.
 

MTF

Full Member
Joined
Aug 17, 2009
Messages
5,243
Location
New York City
RobinLFC said:
His longevity actually might play against him in this respect. I was 10 when he moved from United to Real - he never really stood out in their Galacticos team and once he moved to LA Galaxy, we only saw him play in patches for AC Milan and PSG when he was well past 30. The image I feel quite a few people of my age or a few years younger have on Beckham is that he was a global star because of his looks who was also decent at football; you'd have to really educate yourself and dive into his United years to appreciate how great he actually was for you guys.

I think that's where the underrating could come from. I doubt people who've watched him from the beginning of his career until the end would underrate him, but could be wrong.
Click to expand...
He just has a slightly weird trajectory. He had the best season of his career at age 23-24, United didn't win Europe again in his next few seasons and then he moved to Madrid where he wasn't even the star player for his team anymore, arguably playing out of position and they also didn't win much. Meanwhile through pretty much all of this he was maybe the most famous player in the world. I can understand why people would not appreciate him... I think it would be a bit like if Thomas Muller were the most famous player in the world the past few years. Sure he's very good, but he's not even a top-25 player anymore.

Beckham was a superb player but I really don't expect anyone besides United or other English fans who are non-biased and watched games in the late 90s/early 2000s to understand that.
 

Paxi

Dagestani MMA Boiled Egg Expert
Joined
Mar 4, 2017
Messages
27,678
in Madrid they didn’t expect Beckham to be as good as he was and as professional as he was. He was very well respected by his team mates whom were all superstars. That’s according to Sid Lowe. One mans football opinion you can rely on.
 

VorZakone

What would Kenny G do?
Joined
May 9, 2013
Messages
32,904
MaxiPaxi said:
in Madrid they didn’t expect Beckham to be as good as he was and as professional as he was. He was very well respected by his team mates whom were all superstars. That’s according to Sid Lowe. One mans football opinion you can rely on.
Click to expand...
This flamboyant image of Beckham really did him no favours because people assumed he was a spoilt brat. But in reality he was a great professional.
 

Paxi

Dagestani MMA Boiled Egg Expert
Joined
Mar 4, 2017
Messages
27,678

Miguel is the biggest fraud out there. Constantly talking shit.

The question became a recurring one. Beckham grew tired of insisting that he had not come to sell shirts. The thing was that, as far as the club was concerned, that was part of the reason why he had come. From his perspective he had come to play football. He felt the reduction of him to a question of image was unfair. He was right too: he came to play and, mostly, he played well. Team-mates insisted that he was serious, committed, a hard worker. Figo calls him "a phenomenon … the image he has is totally different to what he is really like as a player and a person".
Beckham quickly won over the Real fans, scoring on his competitive debut against Mallorca in the Super Cup. That autumn he helped Real to a victory at the Camp Nou, their first win away to Barcelona in 20 years. Against Valladolid, Real won 7-2 and Zidane volleyed in first time from a pass so long, so accurate, that one report said Beckham had delivered it from Orense Street, a mile away.
But what really impressed them was his effort. Here he was always a strange kind of galáctico, far from the pampered, lazy stereotype. One columnist summed it up when he admitted: "We expected a pretty boy but this guy scraps and fights." He was a "Stakhanovite" who always put his foot in, made tackles and chased back. There was none of the ego they had expected.
Click to expand...

Full piece: https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2013/may/16/david-beckham-real-madrid-retires
 

90 + 5min

Full Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
Messages
5,229
MaxiPaxi said:

Miguel is the biggest fraud out there. Constantly talking shit.
Click to expand...
I wouldn't say constantly talking sh*t. He just writes things that are questionable. It is his opinion and everyone is entitled to it. But the more he goes into Beckham versus Alexander-Trent subject, the more you wonder if he really watches football games. Or have watched Beckham at all. Once again. Everyone on twitter or in social media can call themself experts without any knowledge.
 

GifLord

Better at GIFs than posts
Joined
Jun 7, 2013
Messages
22,898
Location
LALALAND
Miguel Delaney was 8 years old when Utd won the treble.
He knows shit all about Beckham
 

charlenefan

Far less insightful than the other Charley
Joined
Aug 17, 2005
Messages
33,052
Oh do feck off better than Becks :rolleyes:

Seriously someone should be shot for having such a shit opinion
 

roonster09

Hercule Poirot of the scouting world
Scout
Joined
May 10, 2009
Messages
36,722
GifLord said:
Miguel Delaney was 8 years old when Utd won the treble.
He knows shit all about Beckham
Click to expand...
Miguel Delaney is in mid 20s and he knows feck all about current season too. One of the most clueless journalist.
 

ivaldo

Mediocre Horse Whisperer, s'up wid chew?
Joined
Nov 15, 2012
Messages
28,699
To be fair, Becks was a one trick pony. Other than being a world class crosser, passer (both short and long), set-piece taker, along with being defensively resolute, with a relentless workrate and a peerless attitude towards the game that galvanised his teammates, what did he actually do?
 

K_Ash

New Member
Newbie
Joined
Oct 17, 2014
Messages
976
Is TAA the next (right-footed) Gareth Bale? with that much talent in that right foot, he cant just be confined to be a RB?
 

RashyForPM

New Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2020
Messages
3,183
Klopper76 said:
Beckham was and still is incredibly underrated. I feel like some journalists still hold a weird grudge over him for that red card in France.

TAA has a long way to go before he can be compared to a player like Beckham.
Click to expand...
Sensible. Different positions but as of now, only two players in the PL, both Ballon D’or contenders in KdB and VvD can be compared to Becks, because that was exactly what he was. They’d lose any comparison too, as I think Becks was robbed in 99.
 

Eire Red United

New Member
Joined
Aug 30, 2016
Messages
2,723
Location
Ireland
Trent is absolutely class and there definitely will be a debate to be had on this someday, but for now he has a long way to go.
 

90 + 5min

Full Member
Joined
Aug 8, 2019
Messages
5,229
GifLord said:
Miguel Delaney was 8 years old when Utd won the treble.
He knows shit all about Beckham
Click to expand...
I didn't know that. Now it all seems more understanding. He was learning to walk when Beckham made ManUtd debut.
 

Paxi

Dagestani MMA Boiled Egg Expert
Joined
Mar 4, 2017
Messages
27,678
90 + 5min said:
I didn't know that. Now it all seems more understanding. He was learning to walk when Beckham made ManUtd debut.
Click to expand...
He’s 36 he would have been 14. Even more clueless than he is today I’d imagine.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.