Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has claimed that Sir Alex Ferguson was determined not to see David Beckham in the number seven shirt at Old Trafford.
The number seven shirt at United has become somewhat of a prestigious shirt to wear, having seen club heroes such as Eric Cantona grace it, but when the Frenchman retired in 1997, Roy Keane has claimed that Sir Alex Ferguson, then boss, was determined not to see David Beckham in the shirt for long.
“When Eric Cantona left there was a debate about who was going to be the next captain,” Keane told the Daily Mail. “I was quite relaxed about it.
“But there was his number, too – seven. Bryan Robson had had it before Cantona and, of course, it went back to Georgie Best. The manager pulled me into his office and said that he wanted me to wear the seven. I said, ‘No, I’m not that bothered.’ And he said, ‘I know Becks will fucking want it and I don’t want him to have it.’ The little power battles.
“I’d had 16 since I’d signed for the club. I was comfortable with 16. I think it might have kept me on my toes, being outside the one to 11. I didn’t think that I was a number seven. I said, ‘Give it to Becks.’ Becks got it, and it suited him.”