Yes

The list of Premier League clubs, led by Tottenham Hotspur, who would leap at the chance of securing David Beckham on a short-term loan offers an indication of the appeal the former England captain retains. His pool of suitors comprised six sides at the last count with managers still drooling over the veteran's delivery from the flank, both from open and set plays, and the influence he bestows within a dressing room. Past his pomp he may be but signing him requires no second thought.

Harry Redknapp would be recruiting the perfect professional, a player whose smouldering ambition remains to add to his 115 caps for England, the last of which came against Belarus in October 2009. Those were happier days for Fabio Capello and the England manager will need persuading to select him again. But Beckham knows only eye-catching performances in the Premier League, and possibly the Champions League knockout tie against his former club Milan should he be registered, would convince Capello to contemplate a recall.

Spurs would, presumably, feel the benefit of a midfielder so desperate still to impress. He retains his greatest asset: the bite in his delivery. Redknapp boasts creators already in Rafael van der Vaart, with the injury-prone yet brilliant Dutchman entrusted with many of the set-piece routines, and the excellent Luka Modric but Beckham would undoubtedly add to the armoury, even if employed in a cameo role.

Roman Pavlyuchenko, Peter Crouch and Jermain Defoe must be salivating at the idea of him striding from the bench late in games. "He has a great brain and is a great deliverer and striker of the ball," said the Spurs manager and those are qualities undimmed by age.

Beckham never terrorised opposing full-backs with his pace and trickery. His art was always in the delivery, even from deep and unkind angles. If he is fit enough to withstand the pace of the Premier League, he can still dictate tempo.

The impact he can have off the pitch merely adds to the attraction. Tottenham may shift a few shirts in the club shop – Brand Beckham remains potent – and draw the cameras but the players should welcome his arrival more than the marketing men.

Aaron Lennon is much improved but the most erratic feature of his game remains the accuracy of his crossing. This would be an opportunity to learn from the master, a two-month masterclass. David Bentley would presumably have to be moved out on loan, freeing up a squad place, but Gareth Bale on the opposite flank and the swath of talented youngsters recruited, at some expense, into the club's academy system would benefit from Beckham's presence. Any knowledge he can bestow should be soaked up.

Beckham would offer an injection of profile, personality and pizzazz into a side who have never experienced the dual pursuit of the Premier League and the Champions League.

Financially no deal would overly hurt Spurs. Should it provide a means of maintaining two challenges, it would be virtually self-financing. For Redknapp and his chairman, Daniel Levy, there would surely be no decision to make. DF

No

If football managers are to have any semblance of control over their futures, they need to know and understand the game's modern history. That way the chances of repeating mistakes can be minimised.

Which is why Harry Redknapp should rewind his mind almost 14 years and think not about David Beckham but a counterpart's attempt to deploy another former England winger well after his "best before" date.

In early 1997 Peter Reid was desperate for Sunderland to avoid relegation, so he signed an ageing, fading Chris Waddle. The one-time World Cup star still delivered a mean dead ball but could no longer run properly. Soon the Wearsiders departed the Premier League and Waddle endured the ignominy of seeing himself slated by Reid during the BBC fly-on-the wall documentary series Premier Passions.

True, English football's topography has since altered, quite dramatically. Granted, Spurs are challenging for Champions League and Premier League glory with a squad big enough for Redknapp to use Beckham quite sparingly in the two or three months he may be available. Even so, recruiting him remains a bad idea.

This is particularly so when Tottenham already possess a broadly similar, considerably younger, model if they are looking for an alternative to Aaron Lennon on the right flank. David Bentley has had his problems at White Hart Lane – many, significantly, revolving around lack of pace – but, at their best, the former Blackburn winger's crossing and set-piece delivery remain positively Beckhamesque.

With the original DB now appreciably slower than the man who was supposed to have replaced him in the England team, surely Redknapp would be better off revving up his frequently garaged £15m Bentley? Is it not time for a bit of clever coaching and man management rather than a bling-encrusted trophy signing?

Moreover Tottenham's counterattacking game is so breathlessly slick and quick that, realistically, it may not suit Beckham, especially after several years in more measured Spanish, Italian and American environs.

His introduction could conceivably wreck the hitherto brilliantly balanced Redknapp blueprint; is there really room for Rafael van der Vaart, Luka Modric, Gareth Bale and Becks in one XI?

Team chemistry is not restricted to the pitch. A perpetual celebrity circus surrounds the winner of BBC Sport's recent lifetime achievement award and his "Posh" wife. It may disturb the equilibrium of powerful egos already resident in Redknapp's dressing room.

Remember that when a much more youthful, infinitely more effective, Beckham joined a Real Madrid side captained by Raúl and with Luis Figo established in Beckham's best position, his presence initially provoked considerable low-key locker-room bitching. Would Redknapp similarly risk disrupting squad harmony?

And finally, another history lesson. Think 1996. Kevin Keegan's Newcastle United were clear title favourites with four months of the season to go; then Keegan signed Asprilla. Suddenly on-field synchronicity evaporated and Manchester United finished first.

Sometimes understanding the past really can help shape the future. LT