Abramovich is backing Becks manifesto

It is less than 12 months since a presidential election at a leading Spanish football club gave Manchester United fans their first inkling that David Beckham might be leaving his footballing Alma Mater.

Joan Laporta was elected president of Barcelona last June on the promise he would deliver Beckham to the Nou Camp. Now Real Madrid have a presidential candidate who will base his campaign on selling the England captain.

News that Madrid millionaire Enrique Sobrino is to challenge Florentino Perez for the presidency at the Bernabeu and use Beckham's absenteeism as a reason to be rid of him is not a manifesto likely to produce election victory. What it will have done, however, is alert Chelsea and Arsenal to the fact that Beckham's position at Real Madrid is being challenged and undermined in influential quarters.

Anyone who has seen Beckham at work will know that Senor Sobrino does not understand what drives him because the last thing he can be accused of is a poor work ethic. But he will get encouragement to pursue his platform for election from London, where the movers and shakers are planning what they can do to lure football's hottest property to England's capital.

It is understood there is a release clause in Beckham's contract that would necessitate an outlay of e138million (almost £ 100m). That is more than Arsenal could find but is unlikely to deter Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich, officially declared yesterday as No 1 on Britain's Rich List.

Abramovich, his Russian legion and hired hand Peter Kenyon will be watching the situation in Madrid with diligence and anxiety, particularly since chief executive Kenyon has ground to make up in terms of his reputation.