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Diego Simeone has admitted that he took a dive to get David Beckham sent off at the 1998 World Cup.
And the Argentinian bad boy was successful, as Golden Balls was shown a red card for the incident, which ultimately preceded England being dumped out of the competition.
Becks became a figure of hate in the UK following the incident after then-manager Glenn Hoddle blamed England's exit on the red card, believing that they would have seen out the game if they kept 11-men on the pitch.
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But now in the new Netflix documentary on Beckham's life, Simeone has admitted that he does not believe the incident was a red card – because he was simply playing dirty.
Recalling the incident, Simeone said: “It’s not only about controlling the ball. It’s also about focus and passion, and also controlling anger. I went to him to see how he would react."
But asked if Beckham should have been sent off, the Atletico Madrid manager added: “Absolutely not. Absolutely not. The contact was minimal. You can see I was hamming it up, knocked over by David’s imaginary kick.”
Did you think Beckham deserved a red card? Let us know in the comments section.
The pair would then meet on the pitch again a number of months later when Manchester United took on Inter Milan in the Champions League.
The media was geared up for the clash of the pair and all eyes were on their pre-match handshake. “He wasn’t happy. That’s understandable," recalls Simeone.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer remembered the pressure on Beckham in their rematch. “There was a little bit of talk, seeing how you do now against this lad," he said. "I don’t think we as a team said we’d do him for you, but there was a secret code there that if we could, we’d smash him for you.”
United were to run out victors, with Beckham playing a key role in the events. “At the end of the match, he was sensible enough to exchange shirts with me,” Simeone said.
But what happened to the shirt? "I framed it," Beckham said with a wry smile.
- World Cup
- England Football Team
- David Beckham
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