Beckham caught up in old wives' tale

Beckham, of course, has his own little contract negotiations to worry about and last night confirmed that these days in football a chap's image rights are not to be sniffed at.

His unparalleled media drawing power, even when the occasion is merely to see him promote the 2002 range of Police sunglasses - he is halfway through a two-year contract as the face of Police, in exchange for which he receives a million quid and as many free shades as he wants (retail price between £90 and £110).

Sales have doubled in the last year. Conclusion: Beckham sells.

The 26-year-old England captain is also the face of national football in this country. No other player is as instantly recognisable, and therefore more marketable.

His name never appears without the words 'Manchester United' alongside it, and is frequently accompanied by pictures or footage of him in a club shirt. Hence the five-month negotiation battle over the value of that to the club.

Beckham's current contract expires at the end of next season, and it is believed he is close to signing a new deal worth £100,000 a week, including £20,000 in image rights.

"The salary wasn't the problem," he confirmed. "That was sorted out last September. It's just the image rights which caused the delay - that little perk. Otherwise, discussions are going well."

Meantime, Gabby moved on to the Premiership, asking in apparent seriousness: "You must think it more exciting to have been so far behind and have to chase a bit rather than running away with a 13-point lead surely?"

Beckham replied controversially: "I'd prefer the 13-point lead, but it is more exciting. Hopefully, we'll win it with a few days to spare.

"The opposition has got stronger. We didn't play as well as we can at the start of the season, so if we do win it this year it'll be one of the sweetest win. A lot of us had never experienced the stick we took early on, but every player knows he must take the rough with the smooth."

On to the World Cup. Has he been practising Japanese? Beckham knew the answer to that one.

"I'm still trying English, actually," he grinned. "How far can we go at the tournament? It's about time this country won something."

Enough about football. "On to the really important issue," said Gabby. "You've got a new haircut. We are the first people to see it. Describe it for us."

"Pretty much indistinguishable from the way it looked before," said Beckham. Oh all right, he didn't say that. But when your head has been shaved for two years, and you've managed a month's growth of hair, there are only so many miracles even the most talented hairdresser can work on the available material.

Even the keenest of eyes was hard-pressed to notice a death-defying difference between Beckham's hair as it appeared in Manchester United's last match, and Beckham's hair as it appeared last night.

If further proof were needed of Beckham's unshakeable pulling power, it was provided by the fact that those invited to the sunglasses launch were obliged to wait almost two hours for him to turn up.

Guests were told to arrive by 6pm for a 6.45pm start at the studio where Chris Evans's now-defunct programme TFI Friday used to be made.

Everyone - media and 200 squealing sales reps from various firms with which Beckham has lucrative promotional contracts - duly complied, but it was 10 to eight before the man himself appeared.

"Me, nan and grandad," said Beckham apologetically, when asked to explain his tardiness. "I had to wait for them. They're the most important people."

How easily one can envisage Sir Alex accepting such an explanation were Beckham ever to arrive 65 minutes late for kick-off at Old Trafford.

"Ah, that's nice," he would say. "Even though you're a football hero, an international style icon and a multi-millionaire, you are unaffected by your fame and riches.

"Not to worry then. We'll say no more about it."

Last night not everybody quite felt like that, but the squealing sales reps clearly took his explanation as touching proof of his ordinariness.

And nobody but nobody contemplated leaving in a huff, however long the wait, without seeing Beckham.