Leicester City's sensational David Beckham transfer scuppered by wife Victoria

Sven-Goran Eriksson’s sensational bid to bring David Beckham to Leicester City was thwarted by his wife Victoria, the Swedish manager has claimed.

Eriksson, City boss for 12 months across 2010 and 2011, was handed the reins to raise the club’s stature following the King Power takeover, and his profile helped the club make several big signings.

Securing the signature of former England captain Beckham would have been the biggest coup by far, and despite City battling in mid-table in the Championship, Eriksson felt he could lure him to the King Power Stadium.

Beckham, then 35, was at LA Galaxy, but Eriksson proposed that when his time in the States was up, he could come back to England for a rather different challenge. However, a less-than-impressed Victoria suggested the Leicester lifestyle may not match up to that in Los Angeles.

Speaking on the Sacked in the Morning podcast, Eriksson said: “I asked him at a football event, and he was there with his wife. Before dinner we stood talking to each other.

“I was at Leicester at the time, so I said to him: ‘When your contract finishes in the United States, why don’t you come back to England, sign for Leicester and take us up to the Premier League?’

“He said: ‘Maybe, yeah,’ because he doesn’t want to say no. Then Victoria says: ‘Sven, can you see me in Leicester?’ I said: ‘Well, maybe not.’ Finished discussion about Leicester.”

Eriksson made 25 signings in total at City, bringing in plenty of current and future household names, including Kasper Schmeichel, David Nugent, Yakubu, Darius Vassell, Paul Konchesky, and Sol Bamba.

Those signings did not help Eriksson to success at City though. After taking over in October 2010 following Paulo Sousa’s brief stint as boss, the Swede led