Beckham to stay at Real

David Beckham's representative in Spain said yesterday that he expected the former England captain to sign a new deal with Real Madrid "sooner rather than later".

Simon Oliveira denied reports that Beckham and his wife Victoria met the Newcastle United chairman Freddy Shepherd at Claridges Hotel in London to discuss a possible move back to the Premiership. Instead, he said that negotiations over an extension to his deal in Madrid were going well and that Beckham was looking forward to extending his stay under the club's new coach Fabio Capello, who joined from Juventus on Thursday.

"We are in negotiations to renew his contract," Oliveira said. "All parties have shown a desire to tie up a new deal and it will come sooner rather than later."

Capello has said he wants Beckham, who resigned the England captaincy after the team's defeat in the World Cup quarter-finals, to remain at the club.

A newspaper yesterday printed separate pictures of Shepherd and Victoria Beckham leaving Claridges. But Oliveira said: "David and Victoria didn't meet Freddy Shepherd and they haven't discussed a move to Newcastle.

"David dropped Victoria at Claridges to have a meeting with her publishers. It just so happened that Shepherd was also there."