Former English soccer sensation and skipper David Beckham enjoyed a memorable French soccer debut for Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday when he came off the bench to help set up the second goal in the ladder leader's 2-0 win over bitter rivals Marseille.
Soccer crazy French fans could not get much better than watching their favorite star playing like an ace in front of them. Meanwhile, it was Beckham’s show all the way once he landed onto the field. There was no looking back for the soccer giant as he showed no traces of lethargy post retirement.
The victory kept Carlo Ancelotti's side three points clear of Lyon who defeated Lorient 3-1 earlier in the day.
Former Manchester United, Real Madrid and LA Galaxy star Beckham came on in the 76th minute on a freezing, snowy night in Paris to a rousing reception.
With a guaranteed first touch and two more clean passes, a stray ball down the wing was met with derision from the Marseille fans who were stressing their team forward in search of a late equaliser.
But in a true Hollywood climax to his dream debut, Beckham made sure the headlines will again streamline his name by playing a crucial role in the second PSG goal.
The 37-year-old Englishman, who is the oldest player in Ligue 1, put on a neat one-two with Jeremy Menez who then crossed the ball which bounced in off the leg of Zlatan Ibrahimovic for the Swede's league-leading 22nd goal of the season.
"It was a great match - the biggest in France," said Beckham.
"The welcome I got before the match and when I came on was fantastic. To have the opportunity at my age to play in such a great championship and with a great team, I am very happy and very proud."
Ancelotti maintained that Beckham could start Wednesday's French Cup clash at home to Marseille.
"He came on because Marco Verratti was tired and we needed fresh players on the pitch," said Ancelotti, who took off Javier Pastore to include Beckham.
"He showed quality with his passes, his experience. He showed good qualities even if it was difficult to judge in only 20 minutes."
Asked if Beckham could start against Marseille at the Parc des Princes, Ancelotti said: "Perhaps - Verratti is suspended, so maybe he will play."
The match more than lived up to the tremendous hype of Beckham's impact during a rousing first half in which PSG ensured the early chances are not wasted and hit the post in the second minute before taking a fortunate lead after 11 minutes via an own-goal.
Earlier on Sunday, seven-time champions Lyon kept up the stress on PSG with a come-from-behind 3-1 victory over Brittany side Lorient at the Stade Gerland.
Remi Garde's men, who crashed out of the Europa League mid-week, got back to winning ways thanks to goals from Lisandro Lopez, Rachid Ghezzal and Arnold Mvuemba.
Bordeaux gave into a surprise 2-0 home defeat against relegation-threatened Brest, just days after ousting Dynamo Kiev to reach the last 16 of the Europa League.
