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Real Madrid beat Osasuna
Beckham has netted the winning goal in Madrid's last two home games with almost identical shots from just outside the penalty area.
- Indo-Asian News Service
- Updated: February 25, 2007 09:09 AM IST
Read Time:2 min
Madrid:
David Beckham thanks better enforcement of the 10-meter rule and a slice of good fortune for the recent return of his spot kick prowess. Beckham has netted the winning goal in Madrid's last two home games with almost identical shots from just outside the penalty area and earned his team six of its nine league points. The England captain and Real Madrid midfielder's free kick brought Madrid a 1-0 win over Numancia in its first league game of the season at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium on Sept. 11. He repeated the performance yesterday with a 61st-minute strike to defeat Osasuna. A bit of luck "The referee is getting the wall back to the right yardage. Sometimes you need a bit of luck with free kicks. In the last couple of games I've had it," said Beckham. Beckham's goal yesterday was an important one. It lifted Madrid to provisional top place in the standings, but perhaps more importantly for the troubled Spanish giant, it boosted morale after the sudden resignation of Jose Antonio Camacho on Sunday, giving his replacement Mariano Garcia Remon a winning start in charge of the team. "I was trying to sneak a few yards. I was quite surprised how far out it was. Sometimes they go in and sometimes they go up into the stand," he added. Reviving form Beckham's early success this season contrasts with a series of flops last term when he arrived from Manchester United bearing the reputation as a feared free-kick specialist, having netted 30 goals in that manner for the English giant. Last season, he managed four goals from free kicks in all competitions, with just one coming in his 32 league matches. The strike, against Malaga a year ago, didn't come directly from a free kick as he was initially set up by teammate Luis Figo. Missed opportunities Beckham, whose total goal tally for Madrid is nine, said his points this month have helped him recover from a dismal second half of last season. His form for Madrid slipped following allegations about his private life and he was pilloried by the British press for his two penalty misses for England during the European championships in Portugal. "When you score goals like that, and they are important goals, the confidence grows," Beckham said. "It is important that I keep enjoying my football. It's a thing I've always looked for." (AP)Topics mentioned in this article
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