'Football's coming home'¹ — it's the biennial cry of the English as the four-year intervals that separate FIFA's World Cup Finals are bisected with Platini-esque precision by UEFA's European Championship. Every two years the nation is whipped up into a footballing frenzy by the red-tops and, moreover, those that should know better. England expects. But ever since 1966, England has been disappointed, often in excruciating fashion.

1998 was to be no exception.

Yo, I'll tell you what I want, what I really really want.
— The Spice Girls

What David Beckham wanted was to play top-tier football. Having secured a place in Manchester United's starting 11 the preceding season, Beckham first caught the wider public's imagination at the start of the 1996-97 season when he scored from inside his own half with an audacious dipping, curvy-swervy lob over Wimbledon goalie Neil Sullivan. 'Zigazig ha!' England would come to expect great things from that right boot.

The 'Beckhamania' roller coaster gained further momentum when in 1997 he scooped an unlikely trifecta. Inside 12 months, he had inherited retiring Eric 'ooh-ah' Cantona's famous number seven shirt, won the PFA² Young Player of the Year Award, and started dating Posh Spice³. Following the death of HRH Diana Princess of Wales in a car crash in Paris, the English public needed a conduit through which to live vicarious lives of glamour. The Posh-Becks relationship filled that vacuum with gratuitous ostentation.

That Beckham could deliver a sumptuous set-piece or precision defence-splitting pass across the width of the pitch was never in doubt. Nor was the fact that he was a handsome boy with an impish grin, highlighted hair, and more than a soupçon of talent. For those reasons, the neutrals and housewives loved him. Those with lingering doubts were the conservative technicians of football who didn't trust his one-footedness or defensive capability. 'He can't kick with his left foot, can't tackle, can't head and doesn't score many goals – apart from that he's all right,' said wizard George Best. And then there were those that would scythe down every sarong-wearing⁴ 'tall poppy'⁵ just out of spite: 'Stand up if you hate Man U,' indeed.

The England team should be managed by an English manager.
— David Beckham

And in 1998, so it was. Glenn Hoddle entered the World Cup Finals in France with the unusual luxury of having 22 fit squad players at his disposal. They were a concoction of exciting youth and stalwart experience, the froth from the top of the English Premier League. As is customary, the English media convinced the ovine that England were a good shout for the trophy. It was time to unfurl the banner of St George — the collective hopes of a nation set to rest on some fairly young shoulders.

Uncharacteristically, the campaign started well for England, who cobbled together a not entirely convincing 2-0 win over Tunisia, with goals at the end of each half from Alan Shearer and Paul Scholes, respectively. England were promising much but failing to fire on all cylinders. Assuredly, though, that would change against the Romanians.

But it didn't. As in the first game, Hoddle left out rising star Beckham from the starting line-up in favour of Tottenham Hotspur's ephemeral Darren Anderton, citing lack of focus⁶. It was inspirational midfielder Paul Ince, though, and not the flimsy Anderton, who couldn't make it through the first half, making way for Beckham to enter the fray after 33 minutes. England lifted but still could only conspire to lose 2-1, with teenage sensation Michael Owen netting for St George. They would have to beat the Columbians in the final group game.

Almost by popular demand, Hoddle included Beckham in the 11 for the must-win game in Lens' Stade Félix-Bollaert. And, as things transpired, England cruised to a 2-0 win. Anderton scored first, but poignantly the game was signed, sealed and delivered when Beckham blasted home from a free kick 25 yards out. As the odds on England shortened, so the fever deepened.

Anglo-Argentine Relations

In 1986, winning that game against England was enough. Winning the World Cup was secondary for us. Beating England was our real aim
— Roberto Perfumo, former captain of Argentina

While Anglo-Argentine rivalries are firmly rooted in deep colonial history, hostilities really kicked off in 1966 at the World Cup Finals in England. During the quarter final between the two, an ugly match which England took 1-0, West German referee Rudolf Kreitlein sent off Argentine captain Antonio Rattin for dissent. Rattin, unhappy, took his time to leave the field, before trampling on the red carpet along the way. At the final whistle, England manager Alf Ramsey, riled by the foul tactics employed by the Argentine team, ran onto the field and physically prevented George Cohen from swapping shirts with Roberto Perfumo. 'Our best football will come against the team who come out to play and not act as animals,' he said. Argentina was understandably incensed by the insult.

Eleven years later, during a 'friendly' international in Buenos Aires, Trevor Cherry became only the third player to be sent off while playing for England, after an incident in which Argentina's Daniel Bertoni also saw red. In the words of England manager Don Revie: 'Trevor is the unluckiest player to be sent off... Trevor went for the ball, won it, then backed off. Bertoni turned and threw a punch which knocked out two of Cherry's front teeth.'

The small matter of the invasion and liberation of the Falklands intervened in 1986, adding extra spice to a quarter final at the 1986 World Cup Finals in Mexico. It is a game not remembered for any act of belligerence, but instead for two goals — one ridiculous and one sublime — both scored by Diego Maradona. The first, described later by Maradona as having been scored 'a little with the head of Maradona and a little with the hand of God', was punched into the net by the diminutive Argentine from between the hands of leaping giant Peter Shilton. The second, widely acknowledged as the greatest goal in World Cup history, had Maradona the maestro dancing through the England defence as if the ball had been laced to his boot. England forward Gary Lineker, who scored a solitary consolation, philosophised that it was 'probably the one and only time in my whole career I felt like applauding the opposition scoring a goal'.

Geoffroy Guichard Stadium, St Etienne, France: 30 June, 1998

Quite apart from all the political history, the desire of the whole country is to defeat England.
— Diego Simeone, captain of Argentina

Come the day of reckoning, an estimated domestic UK television audience of 28 million people were to watch England take on Argentina.

It was the second round of the 1998 edition of FIFA's World Cup Finals, and interest across the nation was as astonishing for its width as its depth. Hugh Bayley MP (York) would be watching in his Commons office. 'Nothing is more important than this match,' he exclaimed with the enlightened perspective of a parliamentarian. Meanwhile, a spokesman confirmed that the Archbishop of York would be '...rooting for England', hoping that '...it will be the foot of an English footballer rather than the Hand of God that will make the difference', alluding without hesitation to the perceived injustice of 1986.

Hoddle, himself a player in the team that lost to Maradona, included both Beckham and Owen in the starting 11. The nation collectively breathed deep: a referendum on the matter would have concurred.

It didn't start well for England. Five minutes into the game, Gabriel Batistuta netted from the spot after Diego Simeone had fallen over England 'keeper David Seaman. Almost immediately, up the other end Danish referee Kim Milton Nielson settled the score by awarding a penalty to England after Owen tripped over thin air. Alan Shearer made no mistake, and it was one-apiece.

Then, on 16 minutes, a moment of tongue-hanging-out brilliance broke the game wide open. Owen, having received a perfectly weighted pass from Beckham, raced into the Argentine half, easily outpacing the lumbering Chamot and rounding a stranded Ayala, before slotting home across a helpless Carlos Roa. A week previously, Columbian Carlos Valderrama had spoken the thoughts of many: 'Who's Owen?' Well, now they knew. England 2 Argentina 1.

And so it remained until the stroke of half-time when a lazy challenge on Lopez by Sol Campbell resulted in a free-kick from which Zanetti levelled. Half-time: England 2 Argentina 2.

I've made a big mistake here.
— David Beckham

For the English, it was as good as over within two minutes of the restart. There is no question that Simeone made a deliberately clumsy challenge on Beckham, clattering into the England number seven from behind while vying for a loose ball. There is no question either that the Argentine captain made a nonsense out of getting back to his feet, making sure, with a hand and a knee in Beckham's back and a slyly reassuring toe into the side of his neck, that the England player knew he was there. It was in every way cautionable, and referee Nielson was already on his way to deliver justice. Then, perhaps inexplicably to some but understandably to others, as Beckham lay face down on the turf his generally cultured right boot flicked out, catching Simeone on the back of the knee. Nielson was but yards away. The Argentine went down as if felled with an axe, despite Beckham's claims later that he'd barely touched him. Certainly it looked innocuous, but retaliation is retaliation: Nielson had little choice but to send Beckham off. To his credit, the crestfallen player left the field without protest.

To England fans the length and breadth, the second half unfolded like the proverbial car accident — the full horror of the incident failing to consolidate until it was all over. The remaining 40-odd minutes, and then 30 more for extra time, were just a surreal blur punctuated oh-so briefly by the momentary ecstasy of Campbell's late disallowed headed winner. It had been an epic encounter. Russian roulette FIFA-style would follow.

England's penalty fools are out!
— Das Bild

The English are pachydermal when it comes to recalling penalty shoot-out failures, and 1998 cemented into place the hoodoo which remains today. At Italia '90⁷ the indestructible Stuart Pearce thumped the ball into Bodo Illgner's legs, while Chris Waddle contrived to balloon over the bar. And at Euro '96⁸ Gareth Southgate's weak sudden-death attempt was kept out by Andy Kopke. And so it was at St Etienne in 1998 that Ince would have his feeble effort thwarted, before David Batty's equally unimpressive chest-high shot was easily knocked down by a jubilant Roja. It was great theatre. Cue Latin pandemonium. Exit England left.

We're coming home...
— Daily Mail

The aftermath was not pretty. Initially, a stunned English media satisfied itself with tales of woe, injustice and what should have been. But rapidly the disappointment congealed, focusing its ire on the perceived cause of England's elimination from the tournament. The Mirror was particularly harsh: '10 HEROIC LIONS, ONE STUPID BOY' shouted its cruel headline. The Sun referred to Beckham's 'moment of madness', while the Daily Mail concurred, citing a 'moment of lunacy that cost cup hopes'. It seemed that Sky's Kay Burley could speak of nothing else. Even the level-headed BBC stooped to accuse Beckham of idiocy. No footballer before or since has been so 'petulant'. Half of England had to look it up.

Hoddle added his own fuel to the fire. 'It cost us, it cost us dearly,' he moaned. The Queen, outflanked by the public a year earlier, was reported to have been 'not amused'.

But there the breast-beating did not cease. In an unrelated House of Commons debate, Damian Green MP (Ashford) felt compelled to leap onto the bandwagon: 'I can assume only that, like much of the rest of the country, they are spending the morning sticking pins into wax models of David Beckham. That will be my last reference to that national disaster.' His words may have been in jest, but not far away in South Norwood a sack in a sarong was hanging by a noose outside the Pleasant Pheasant pub. Serial troublemakers the 'Inner City Firm' were said to be threatening Beckham's parents' home, prompting them to hire security. A London butcher put two pigs' heads in his window: 'David and Victoria.'

Not pretty, just plain ugly.

Beckham's first match back on English soil, the 1998 Charity Shield, was marked by Arsenal fans jeering his every touch. It was prelude to abuse that would endure throughout the season and beyond.

Perspective

Simeone has since admitted trying to mislead referee Nielson that night in St Etienne, justifying his action by claiming 'anyone would have done so in just the same way'. Owen would agree, confirming that he would make the most of a tackle if he thought he'd gain advantage for his team.

And on his 'Hand of God' goal in 1986, Maradona has been unrepentant: 'I sometimes think I preferred the one with my hand... It was a bit like stealing the wallet of the English... It was as if we had beaten a country, not just a football team... Although we had said before the game that football had nothing to do with the Malvinas⁹ war, we knew they had killed a lot of Argentine boys there, killed them like little birds. And this was revenge.'

Some people believe football is a matter of life and death. Some believe it is much more important than that. Humberto Muñoz Castro might agree. But the girlfriend of his victim, Andrés Escobar, or those who lost relatives at Heysel¹⁰ or Hillsborough¹¹, or those aboard the molotov cocktailed Internazionale team bus in December 2000, might be differently inclined.

After he'd been sent off, Beckham was distraught. He knew he'd let himself, his team and his country down. 'I went through every emotion,' he said. 'For a good ten minutes, I just lost it. I didn't cry anything like that again until I heard I was going to be a dad.'

On that same sultry European summer night, 30 June, 1998, Frenchman Eric Fraschet-Lentin was stabbed to death by an England supporter while on a train from Grenoble to Paris, apparently mistaken for an Argentine fan. His death was the only football-related fatality of France '98.

Someone might remind the players at least that, when all is said and done, it really is just a game.

Epilogue

In 2001 a shaven and shorn Beckham would secure England's progress to the 2002 World Cup Finals in Japan/South Korea¹² with a stunning last-gasp dipping, curvy-swervy free-kick into the Greek goal. 'Zigazig ha!' For the fans who once would have had Beckham hung, his redemption was complete.

But Beckham himself had one final cathartic moment to himself when England met Argentina at the Sapporo Dome in 'Japorea' in 2002. Once again the artful Owen won a spurious first-half penalty, and England captain Beckham stepped up to exorcise his demons. 'Pick that out!'