Pafos manager Albert Celades found himself in an unexpected situation on Wednesday evening when a journalist steered his post-match press conference towards the ongoing Beckham family dispute.
The Spanish coach had just watched his Cypriot side put up a determined showing against Chelsea, ultimately falling 1-0 to the Premier League club at Stamford Bridge in what marked Pafos's debut appearance in the Champions League.
Following questions about the match itself, the press conference took an unusual turn when attention shifted away from football entirely.
David Beckham had addressed the family rift earlier at the World Economic Forum in Davos, but Celades appeared wholly unprepared for the topic.
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The connection between Celades and the former England captain stems from their shared time at the Bernabéu, where the Spaniard spent five years as a midfielder from 2000 to 2005.
Beckham arrived at the Spanish giants from Manchester United in 2003, meaning the pair were teammates for two seasons.
Drawing on this link, a reporter posed the question: "You obviously played for some time with David Beckham at Real Madrid, have you been following his saga? And what are your thoughts on it?"
Pafos manager Albert Celades found himself in an unexpected situation on Wednesday evening when a journalist steered his post-match press conference towards the ongoing Beckham family dispute | XCelades appeared visibly puzzled by the enquiry, breaking into a smile before responding: "What is this saga?"
The club's press officer swiftly stepped in to shield the manager from the off-topic enquiry.
"Don't answer this question, I think the question is not relevant to Pafos FC. I am sorry," the official interjected.
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Albert Celades and David Beckham were teammates at Real Madrid
|GETTY
Celades acknowledged his confusion over the terminology but offered a measured response nonetheless: "I don't understand the last word, but we played together, yes."
The journalist then conceded that avoiding the subject was "probably wise."
Despite the awkward exchange, the Pafos boss chose to share fond recollections of his former colleague: "No, but I have a good memory of him, because we spent time together. He was an amazing professional and a very good player of course."
The family dispute that prompted the unusual press conference moment had erupted earlier in the week when Brooklyn Beckham publicly criticised his parents David and Victoria.
The eldest Beckham child accused the couple of manipulating public narratives surrounding his life and claimed they had worked to undermine his relationship with wife Nicola Peltz.
Brooklyn Beckham has been feuding with his family since early last year | PABrooklyn's statement went further, alleging his parents had subjected him to humiliation and that his siblings had been deployed to target him through social media attacks.
The controversy had already drawn significant attention before David addressed the matter during his appearance at the Swiss economic summit.
Chelsea beat Pafos 1-0 on Wednesday night.
Midfielder Moises Caicedo scored the only goal of the game in the 78th minute of the match.