Beckham in angry tirade against 'liar' Calderon

David Beckham verbally savaged Real Madrid's president, Ramon Calderon, in front of the entire first-team squad during this week's crisis meeting at the club's Valdebebas training ground.

Calderon faced the players to apologise for comments made about Beckham and his team-mates on Wednesday and details have emerged of the extent to which Beckham took the chance to respond to the criticism levelled at him.

Believing he was speaking off the record, Calderon described Beckham as a "half-baked actor" who had run off to Hollywood because no other club wanted him. Earlier in the week he said the former England captain had been dishonest during transfer talks.

At the meeting Beckham is understood to have told both Calderon and his sporting director, Predrag Mijatovic: "You are liars. You told the fans that I had bought a house in Los Angeles and that I had already agreed a contract but that is not true. The club, my team-mates, and the coach have treated me well and have my respect but you two will never have my respect."

The verbal assault beganin Spanish before Beckham reverted to English. The president's response was to ask Beckham for forgiveness, saying: "Sorry, a thousand times sorry." Other team-mates then said their piece to the president, who had insulted them with his comments to students on the "vanity and ego" within the club dressing room.