David Beckham reveals injury heartache

Beckham said when he told Victoria about the tendon problem he realised he had a wife that really understood me. Picture: Getty

The ex-Manchester United and Real Madrid midfielder said that as he told fashion designer Victoria about the disastrous tendon problem he realised he “had a wife that really understood me”.

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He talks about the incident in a new unseen interview which is part of the DVD release of his BBC adventure documentary David Beckham Into the Unknown, following his travels through the Brazilian rainforest.

His Achilles injury occurred as he played for AC Milan in the months leading up to the 2010 World Cup finals, in which he had desperately hoped to represent England again.

Beckham said: “I felt my Achilles had gone - there was a huge hole in it. And the doctor came over to me and he gave me the phone.

“Victoria was on the phone and she said: ‘What’s just happened?’ And I said to her ‘It’s done’. And she said, ‘What do you mean it’s done?’

“And I remember, I’ll never forget, she just burst out unconditionally with emotion and crying - when someone just kind of can’t get their breath. She literally handed the phone to one of the boys and the boys were upset.”

He went on: “That was one of the points when I knew I had a wife that really understood me and really understood why I was doing it.

“She knew how much it meant to me, she knew how much playing in a fourth World Cup meant to me. That was a tough time for me.”

Beckham, who married former Spice Girl Victoria in 1999, filmed the documentary in the run-up to the World Cup in Brazil this summer.

In other interviews which did not feature in the version of the film broadcast on BBC1, the father-of-four also talks about his cookery skills and the treats he prepares for the family.

“When I was in Italy the culinary course was one of the things I always wanted to do.

“So I had the time and I thought, why not? The kids love Italian, so I can make fresh pasta from scratch. Victoria is easy. She loves vegetables and she loves salad, so Victoria’s easy.”

The DVD is released today by BBC Worldwide.

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