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Father and son footballers
Mark Chamberlain & Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain(below)
Paul and Thomas Ince
Zinedine and Enzo Zidane
Cesare and Paolo Maldini
Arnor and Eidur Gudjohnsen
Peter and Kasper Schmeichel
Frank Lampard Snr and Jnr
Jean and Youri Djorkaeff
Johan and Jordi Cruyff
Leroy and Liam Rosenior
Mike and Ian Walker
David Beckham is in the autumn of his
career - but there may soon be another family member pulling his boots
on at a Premier League club.
Sportsmail can reveal that Beckham's 13-year-old son Brooklyn has had a trial for Chelsea at the club's state-of-the-art training ground.
Beckham Snr was pictured with another
Chelsea academy player in the snow at Cobham on Tuesday - sparking
speculation that the former England midfielder could make a sensational
return to the Premier League.
But it has emerged that he was there to
watch his son in a low-key academy game aimed at giving him a taste of
English football at junior level.
Players and parents were stunned to see Beckham on the touchline cheering on his 13-year-old son.
Sid Celery tweeted: 'Ok, so I've just
picked up that the reason David Beckham was at Cobham today was that son
Brooklyn is being trialled for CFC U14s #Phew.'
Cole perry dasilva said: 'David
Beckham's son Brooklyn is on trial for my team #chelseafc… David Beckham
was watching our training session tonight!! Madness'.
Brooklyn was on the Under 14 roster at the LA Galaxy academy while his dad played in California.
Spotted: David Beckham was snapped with a Chelsea youth team player after watching Brooklyn at Cobham
Like father like son: David Beckham with
his sons (from left Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz) in LA Galaxy kits at his
final game in the MLS.
Having a ball: David Beckham and son Brooklyn enjoy the snow in London this week
Young one: It's 20 years to the day since Becks signed his first professional contract with Manchester United
Fairytale ending: Beckham finished his spell in LA by lifting the MLS Cup
Why Chelsea think the kids are all right
Chelsea have long attempted to boost
their youth ranks as part of their bid to become self-sufficient under
Roman Abramovich. They have had some successes and many failures with
bringing through kids to the first team, although Nathan Ake is the
latest to come through the ranks.
A statement on the academy section of
the club's website reads: 'To produce home-grown professional
footballers capable of competing with Europe's elite players. A talented
young footballer wanting to play for Chelsea needs to strive to be
among the best in the world.
'Producing a core of our own young
talent has never been more challenging; nor has it ever been more
worthwhile. The development of young players is vital to the long-term
success of any football club.
'Therefore the production of home grown
players through the Academy system, who can progress to first team level
is a key area of Chelsea Football Club. The financial gains are
undisputed; a successful Academy has the potential to save the club
millions of pounds in the transfer market. The benefits however, go
deeper still.
'A world class youth development
programme can also promote long-term loyalty and commitment to the club
among those players who eventually make it into the 'big time'. Whether
these boys are plucked from the local talent pool or brought in from
abroad, Chelsea's drive towards self-sufficiency is crucially dependant
on the creation of a successful Academy structure, capable of nurturing
players of the highest quality.'
Beckham Snr has since left the US side
and is currently considering his next move after leaving LA Galaxy at
the end of the MLS season in December.
An insider said: ‘Brooklyn is like any
teenager with an ambition to be a footballer. He has just returned to
England and wanted to see how he fared.
'Chelsea are one of the strongest
academies in the country. The difference is that he is the son of the
former England captain and this will draw attention.’
Beckham has spoken in the past about the
difficulties of Brooklyn being a football-mad son of one of the most
famous footballers on the planet.
'They've got a great life set up for them,' he told The Times. 'Obviously our boys and little girl are very lucky.
'But I think, as a parent, you always worry: "Have they got the hunger that I had as a kid?"'
He added: 'I'm as hard on my boys as my
dad was. They always ask, "Did I play well?" I'll say, "You did all
right, could have done better..."'
Beckham is a free agent after leaving LA
Galaxy and has attracted interest from QPR and West Ham in the Premier
League, and Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain in France.
There is also interest from the UAE,
where former England boss Sven Eriksson himself is now technical
director at Al Nasr in Dubai, and the Swede says he would welcome the
Manchester United legend to the Middle East with open arms.
The Beckhams are in London after moving back to the UK following the end of his contract with Galaxy.
The family are currently renting a
lavish £20million property in London from Touker Suleyman, boss of Ghost
and Hawes & Curtis, while the Beckham brood will be educated at
London schools.
A source recently told MailOnline: 'It's time for a new London life, they are all very excited.'
So, can Brooklyn Bend it like Beckham (Snr)...?
As these pictures show, it looks like Brooklyn has been copying his dad's famous technique for taking those free-kicks...
Spot the difference: It looks like Brooklyn has been copying his dad's way of curling those set-pieces
Bond: Beckham with son Brooklyn at an LA Galaxy kids match in 2011
On the ball: Brooklyn loves football and has spent a lot of time at the training ground with his dad
PS And there aren't many kids who can say they've already scored at Old Trafford!
Watch this footage of Brooklyn, who had
only recently turned two, score at the Theatre of Dreams. Well, with a
little help from Manchester United's famous No 7...
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