Beckham speaks out on Sir Alex Ferguson's Man Utd conspiracy with final verdict
David Beckham has backed up Sir Alex Ferguson 's conspiracy surrounding Manchester United 's 1996 away kit, admitting that the grey kit made it hard to see teammates.
The away kit calamity happened when the Red Devils faced off against Southampton at The Dell, which saw Ferguson's men head in at half-time 3-0 down thanks to goals by Ken Monkou, Neil Shipperley, and Matt Le Tissier.
However, Beckham and co weren't given the hairdryer treatment, as many would have been expecting. Instead, Ferguson's fury was directed at the team's grey away colours and the legendary manager instructed his players to change into their third kit, which was blue and white.
Man Utd's performance in the second half improved and they even pulled a goal back through Ryan Giggs but it wasn't enough to stage a comeback on the South Coast.
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"The players don't like the grey strip," Ferguson explained after the game. "The players couldn't pick each other out. They said it was difficult to see their teammates at distance when they lifted their heads. It was nothing to do with superstition. This club went 26 years without winning the league and we didn't think about changing the red shirts. It's nothing to do with that at all."
One of United's superstars at the time, Beckham, has confirmed that the kit was difficult to see his teammates in. "It wasn't the greatest period for us, we obviously got beat by Southampton, I think it was," Beckham started, in a chat with ClassicFootballShirts. "Then we got beat the week after. Not sure we wore it again."
Beckham added: "Obviously, people are going to say, 'Of course you're going to say that.' Actually, it was a struggle to see each of your players on the pitch, because it just blended in with the crowd. We're not blaming it on the loss but it wasn't easy."
Eric Cantona of Manchester United in the third kit in the second half of the 1996 Southampton game (Getty)Following the shirt controversy, Man Utd went on to secure the double with League and FA Cup victories. The double in 96 were Beckham's first two trophies of his career and he went on to win two Champions Leagues and League titles in Spain, France, and the USA. Beckham also won many other domestic Cup competitions.
The English football icon may have taken United's kit conspiracy of that season into consideration when signing off on stripes for his own football team, Inter Miami. Becks is a co-owner of the MLS outfit and has helped seal transfers for football legends Lionel Messi, and Sergio Busquets, as well as other high-profile transfers.
Inter Miami's kits from the most recent seasons were pink with a few black stripe features. The away kit was the opposite, being mostly black with pink stripes.
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