David Beckham retires

David Beckham in his early days at Manchester United

David Beckham has announced that he will retire from football at the end of the season. A career spanning two decades with six different clubs and is littered with honours including 6 Premier League medals, two FA cups, one champions league, one La Liga, two MLS and a French Ligue One medal this year.

Beckham also holds the England record for the most appearances by an outfield player with 115 caps. He scored 17 goals for his country and captained his national side for six years between 2000 and 2006.

He is expected now to return to London with his wife Victoria and children, Brooklyn, Romeo, Cruz and Harper. His fortune is said to be worth around £165m and there have previously been suggestions that he would like to invest in an MLS club and pursue his coaching schemes for schoolchildren.

After making his debut in 1992, Beckham won six titles with United, scoring 62 goals in 265 Premiership matches. He was also a member of United’s historic treble winning team, playing a crucial role for United in the final against Bayern. In the absence of suspended Roy Keane and Paul Scholes, Ferguson deployed Beckham in central midfield, a new role for the right winger.

Beckham’s composure throughout the game was remarkable and both of United’s late goals came from his in-swinging corners. Speaking after his announcement, Beckham was emotional to be closing the door on his glittering career.

"If you had told me as a young boy I would have played for and won trophies with my boyhood club Manchester United, proudly captained and played for my country over one hundred times and lined up for some of the biggest clubs in the world, I would have told you it was a fantasy. I'm fortunate to have realised those dreams," said Beckham.

"To this day, one of my proudest achievements is captaining my country. I knew every time I wore the Three Lions shirt, I was not only following in a long line of great players, I was also representing every fan that cared passionately about their country. I'm honoured to represent England, both on and off the pitch."

He continued: "Nothing will ever completely replace playing the game I love. However, I feel like I'm starting a new adventure and I'm genuinely excited about what lies ahead. I'm fortunate to have been given many opportunities throughout my career and now I feel it's my time to give back."

Wenger praises old rival Ferguson

Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger

Arsène Wenger has said that he "was not surprised" to hear of Sir Alex Ferguson's decision to retire as manager of Manchester United. In an interview, Wenger also stated that he had predicted Ferguson’s decision since the start of the season.

"I was not surprised and I told my staff a long time ago that I think it will be Alex Ferguson's last year. I detected a few signs through the season – there was already one of them before the season started, that it could be his final year."

Wenger also praised Ferguson for his "remarkable career" with Manchester United but noted that the 71-year-old may find life away from the spotlight difficult to adjust to. "There is a double challenge now," he said. "The first is for Manchester United to replace a guy of that stature, and the second challenge for Alex 

Ferguson is to have a life as passionate and as interesting as the life he had until now.

"He is luckier than me because he likes horses, he likes golf, so he can certainly have an interesting life again. But of course when you have been such a long time involved in every [game] … our job is always looking forward to the next game, so you are always motivated by that. At the start it is difficult to miss that."

He added: "But after 26 years, he just won the championship, he knows it will be more difficult even for Man United to have that consistency now because there are so many teams who have financial power. You have to respect his decision."