Wenger praises Beckham

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has revealed his incredible respect for England midfielder David Beckham. Ahead of Becks' 100th gap against France tomorrow night, Wenger revealed he was delighted to hear the news he would play, and praised him for being a 'role model' to his young Gunners side while he trained with him.

"At first, his 100th cap would be a great happiness to me," Wenger told L'Equipe.

"I have always appreciated the nice side of David. To me, it was natural to welcome him to train with ourselves.

"I even believed he could give a boost to the group. It was an appeal in our daily life. To me, he remains someone who has always played with his heart. If for one second, I would have supposed he would act as a star in Arsenal's training sessions, I would never have thought to add him to my players' group.

"But it happened as I could imagine. He was an example. He worked like a dog, arrived first and left last.

"He has been extremely discreet, sociable, almost a model. Everyone was happy.

"There is a huge gap between the man in the front page of newspapers and the boy who has been in our changing room."