DAVID BECKHAM emerged unscathed from his day of reckoning, writes Chris Lightbown. The prospect of making his first away appearance of the season at West Ham would have been intimidating at the best of times.
But for Upton Park to be the venue for his first appearance before a hostile crowd since being sent off in the World Cup was an experience to test the hardiest professional.
The more so, since one of the strands of Beckham's temperament is his brittleness. In the event, one of the Premiership's most vociferous crowds gave Beckham only marginally more of a harder time than he normally receives at West Ham.
He was clearly nervous on arrival at the ground and, as was always expected, was escorted from the team bus by a policeman.
He had good reason to be nervous. In their game at Sheffield Wednesday last week, a considerable portion of West Ham's following chanted "There's only one week to Beckham." Effigies of Beckham had been displayed in East London with nooses around the neck and one West Ham fanzine had printed a red card, emblazoned with "You are not forgiven" on its cover. By 1.15pm, there were no less than 13 police vans in one side street near the entrance Manchester United would be using into Upton Park.
However, apart from a solitary bottle that slapped against the side of the bus as it arrived, the day saw no viciousness. For nearly an hour, Beckham was booed every time he touched the ball but, thereafter, the home crowd put their emotion solely into cheering for their team. Beckham played in his normal position on the right wing and only came into the match fitfully during the first half. But few of his teammates did better in that period, though.
The day had its surreal moments. When Manchester United came out to warm up at 2.40, there was a spattering of booing around the ground - admittedly less than half full at the time - but no more. But when the club's video screens showed footage of Beckham getting off the coach, the image was roundly booed while Beckham the real person was allowed to continue his pre-match warm up routine relatively unmolested.
As few choruses of "You let your country down!" rang around the ground in periods during the first half, but they passed. Throughout the game, as in the Charity Shield, Beckham's demeanour gave off none of the cockiness which has threaded its way through his manner over the last two seasons and he played with a concentration that has sometimes been lacking in his game.
Bizarre as it may seem, the reaction to the sending off against Argentina may finally help the boy Beckham become the man and player he has always fallen short of becoming.
