Making a portrait of David Beckham was a challenge, said the artist

The hour long video is described as "an intimate portrait of the footballer" and sees him sleeping after a training session in Madrid.

Gallery curators have said visitors will be intrigued by it.

The video, created by Sam Taylor-Wood, is on loan to the Liverpool Walker Art Gallery until 21 January 2007.

The film presents a reverential and vulnerable image of the international football icon, said gallery curators.

Sam Taylor-Wood, 39, who created the sleepy shots said: "Making a portrait of a much-photographed man like David Beckham was a challenge.

"I wanted to create a direct, closely observed study. Filming while he was asleep produces a different view from the many familiar, public images."

Sam Taylor-Wood graduated from Goldsmiths College in 1990.

Her work in photography and film has won her much international critical acclaim, including a Turner Prize nomination.

Beckham, 31, from London, signed to play for Manchester United in 1991 and made his first-team debut three years later.

He was appointed England captain in 2000.

In 2003, he left Manchester United to play for Real Madrid.