IF Sir Alex Ferguson has been a father figure to the players that have come through Manchester United's youth system, then David Beckham was always the runt of the litter.

Despite his untold riches, Ferguson has never betrayed his working-class roots and tough upbringing in Govan.

Which is why, every time he saw Beckham prance about in a sarong or partner his wife Victoria to a glitzy film premiere, Ferguson winced.

Whenever he felt Beckham was getting too big for his football boots, Ferguson reminded the England captain who was boss.

One never saw Paul Scholes, the antithesis of Beckham's pop star lifestyle, chastised in public.

Remember the midfielder being forced to watch from the Elland Road stands after a bust-up in 2000?

And now, as Beckham tries to become famous in the United States on the back of his popularity in this country, Ferguson has applied the coup de grace.

Like the doleful husband whose friends were all aware of his wife's infidelity before he discovered the truth, Beckham was the last to know.

"What's all this s*** in the papers about me leaving?" was the gist of a text message Beckham allegedly sent to his father Ted last week.

Whether this missive ever existed is a moot point, but what is indisputable is that Beckham is mystified by United's desire to sell him.

Which begs the question: why?

That is, why did Beckham misread the signs that have been blaring out of Old Trafford for some time?

Was he blinded by his lifelong love of Manchester United? Was the prospect of being sold by the club he holds so dear to his heart so unpalatable?

Or was it just that no one told him that, after more than a decade at United, he was about to become acclimatised to pastures new?

Whatever the reason, Beckham was the last to know.

The decision to put him on the bench for Real Madrid's Champions League visit to Manchester in April surely told the world that Beckham's United number was up.

Furthermore, Ferguson time and again boasted of the potency of a 4-2-3-1 formation that featured Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on the right - and Beckham nowhere.

So, surely the question that needs to be asked today as Beckham prepares to sever his ties with United is not, "Why?"

Instead, we should be saying, "Why has it taken so long?"