"His strength of character underlines why he has proved an outstanding success as England captain. Because, while he may often look as if butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth, underneath the boyish appearance and the trappings of trendiness, there is a genuinely steely determination that has to be admired. Without it, he simply could not have maintained such high standards in his football, amid the turmoil which has invaded his private life during the past three or four years." As the words indicate, Ferguson admires the player and the individual. What he has greater difficulty with is the image of Beckham adorned on everything from mobile phones and Pepsi Cola cans, through to Alistair McGowan and Ronnie Ancona’s spookily accurate mimicry of Victoria and David on their Big Impression programme.