Okay, so the Premier League has been regarded as greedy and profit-driven since its inception, and the national side has been choking on a regular basis for almost as long since a memorable campaign on home soil at Euro 1996.

But despite being institutionally jeered and hissed at by a large pocket of outsiders for many moons now, football has nonetheless prospered on these shores: domestic league and cup matches are followed globally, success in Europe had become mandatory and some of the game's finest players are lured to our miserably-rainy climates by the cash which comes with such a high

David Beckham's career, in retrospect, feels like one heavily-publicised moment after another. And understandably so, for one of England's most iconic footballers.

Granted, it has been for both good and bad reasons. But if you're more of a Beckham cynic, we have another piece to mark his retirement from the sport, listing the most famous instances of his halo slipping.

Here, however, we wish to recognise the very best of David Beckham. And when he was good, he was exceptional:

1) MAKING HIMSELF KNOWN - Beckham made his Champions League bow for Manchester United against Galatasaray. It was a

David Beckham retires from football as one of the most admired sportsmen of all time - but there was always a dark side to the man who became a global super-brand.

Here's our pick of the worst moments of Beckham's career, on and off the field - though it has to be said, even at the worst of times he still managed to have perfect hair throughout.

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June 1998 - Beckham becomes a national figure of hatred after a petulant kick at Diego Simeone during a World Cup match against Argentina in France. The kick earned him a red card and helped England out of the tournament on penalties.

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June

He has not yet been in the job for a year, but, almost unbelievably, Brendan Rodgers is poised to become the fifth-longest serving manager in the Premier League.

Alex Ferguson had been by far the longest-serving boss in English football, but with him leaving, and several other top flight managers set to be on their way this summer, Rodgers's 346 days at Anfield will see him soar up towards the top of the table.

Fergie: There he goes, there he goes, there he goes...

How come? It works out like this: with David Moyes taking Ferguson's job at United, two of the three previously longest-serving managers are leaving their jobs at the end of the

Brazil's Neymar celebrates after scoring a goal against Argentina in a friendly (Reuters)

Brazilian footballer Neymar has been ranked as the most marketable athlete on the planet again after topping SportsPro’s annual 50 Most Marketable Athletes list, produced in association with Eurosport, for a second successive year.

It is the first time that an athlete has retained the title in the four years SportsPro has published the list, which ranks athletes from across the world according to their marketing potential over the next three years. Criteria included age, home market, charisma, willingness to be marketed and crossover appeal.

LeBron James and Usain Bolt have previously headed

Wigan Athletic's late goal against Manchester City to win the FA Cup final was incredible and breath-taking... yet it wasn't even the most dramatic finish to a match of the weekend.

That honour goes to the final moments of Watford's match against Leicester City in the Championship play-off semi-final second leg. A shocking dive gave Leicester a penalty to win the game more than six minutes into injury time (only four had been officially added by the referee).

But former Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia made sure justice was done by pulling off an amazing double save, then releasing his men

After a fantastic week of sport, we take a look at the greatest images of the week.

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1. BEER WE GO! Bayern Munich's Jerome Boateng pours beer over team mate Franck Ribery as the team celebrates their Bundesliga title.

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2. BACK OF THE NET - Torwart Kevin Muller of Hansa Rostock screams instructions at his team-mates in the match against Karlsruhe.

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3. PUT YOUR SHIRT ON IT - Watford's Troy Deeny strips off to celebrate the 97th minute goal that put his side in the Championship play-off final.

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4. FAREWELL TO A LEGEND - A fan pays tribute to Sir Alex Ferguson

FA Cup upsets

Saturday's FA Cup final will pit the Premier League's wealthiest club against its poorest.

Manchester City have had hundreds of millions poured into them by the Abu Dhabi royal family, and the team have won an FA Cup and a Premier League title in the last two years.

By contrast, Wigan Athletic were recently valued at £42.8 million by well-respected analysts at Sporting Intelligence.

To put that in some kind of perspective, City's strike force alone cost more than double that sum: City reportedly paid £47m to sign Carlos Tevez, £38m for Sergio Aguero and £27m for Edin Dzeko.

So should Roberto