To see Sydney's yoga recovery session...

“The challenge was unintentional," Santalab said at Sydney's recovery session at Bondi.

"I've come in to close David down, and as I've gone in my feet have slipped on the slippery surface and the world's richest player was in front of me and I've accidentally taken him out.

“I was a little worried. When I looked up in the grandstand and seen some of the faces on some of the people after the incident, I kind of died out from the game for five minutes trying to get over it. But he recovered well.

“It was purely unintentional and I don't think any player on the park was out to get Beckham, Santalab added after it was suggested by Galaxy coach Ruud Gullit after the match that his tackle on the superstar was the trigger for the game's unruly behaviour.

He added: “At half time, I walked down the tunnel with him and said I didn't mean, and he replied, 'It's all part of football. I'll see you in the second half.'”

The 25 year old Sydney attacking midfielder played in a similar part of the ground to Beckham, which gave him the opportunity to lock horns with the superstar.

“I was the man in the hole at that time when Beckham was spraying balls around so I took it upon myself to push on him and close him down – if not he could've done some damage - and I think it worked," he said.

“It was a pleasant surprise that he was central as he was supposed to be on the right side. It was just a great honour.

"We can all learn from David Beckham – his distribution and vision. He showed his class.”

To see Sydney's yoga recovery session...