Bye-Bye Becks
advertisment
More in SPORT
back-up- 10 Annoying Things About Wimbledon
- Let’s Vote for John Sergeant!
- Let's Hear it For the Americans
- 10 Signs Football is Going Mad
- The Sport of Watching the Olympics
- The Award for Best Simulation Goes To...
- Why Hamilton Will Win the Grand Prix
- Alternative Summer Sports
- Crisp Whites and Pimm's
- Euro 2008 - Whom Will You NOT Support?
Related Content
- Bye-Bye Banking (14/06/2009)
In the end, David Beckhams 100th game for England was a low-key affair and he probably deserves a better send-off. Next month's friendly with the USA would provide the perfect opportunity.
Amidst all the speculation about whether Fabio Capello would leave Beckham stranded on 99 caps, there was a letter in The Guardian suggesting that perhaps Gary Lineker should be named as one of the substitutes against the USA. That way he could come on to take a penalty and equal Bobby Charlton's goal scoring record.
Why stop there? Sir Bobby might want the opportunity to get a 50th goal for England. What the heck...why don't we make it Goldenballs' testimonial match and get him to play 45 minutes for each side?
Those of us who were under the impression that Capello had been hired to make the sort of ruthless decisions that were too much for his predecessors will be disappointed that the Beckham PR machine seems to have prevailed. Having been overlooked and then recalled by Steve McClaren (a classic example of the manager's indecision being final), Becks has now set his sights on Bobby Moore's 108 appearances, the record for an outfield player.
Bearing in mind that a player as gifted as Glenn Hoddle only played 53 times for his country, it seems that the England cap has been devalued. These kind of comparisons can be dangerous, however I will always find it hard to accept that Carlton Palmer managed to play 18 times for England.
When England take on the USA Beckham will have turned 33. However well he looks after himself he will be long in the tooth in the event that England do qualify for the 2010 World Cup, especially for a player whose game is built on physical effort rather than guile. If Beckham is serious about carrying on then he also needs to be playing in a higher standard of club football than Disneytown can offer.
What seems unlikely is that Beckham will bow out gracefully.
Time for Capello to save him the trouble.
Why stop there? Sir Bobby might want the opportunity to get a 50th goal for England. What the heck...why don't we make it Goldenballs' testimonial match and get him to play 45 minutes for each side?
Those of us who were under the impression that Capello had been hired to make the sort of ruthless decisions that were too much for his predecessors will be disappointed that the Beckham PR machine seems to have prevailed. Having been overlooked and then recalled by Steve McClaren (a classic example of the manager's indecision being final), Becks has now set his sights on Bobby Moore's 108 appearances, the record for an outfield player.
Bearing in mind that a player as gifted as Glenn Hoddle only played 53 times for his country, it seems that the England cap has been devalued. These kind of comparisons can be dangerous, however I will always find it hard to accept that Carlton Palmer managed to play 18 times for England.
When England take on the USA Beckham will have turned 33. However well he looks after himself he will be long in the tooth in the event that England do qualify for the 2010 World Cup, especially for a player whose game is built on physical effort rather than guile. If Beckham is serious about carrying on then he also needs to be playing in a higher standard of club football than Disneytown can offer.
What seems unlikely is that Beckham will bow out gracefully.
Time for Capello to save him the trouble.
Here Is The Writer : John Kirk
John Kirk works at Precise Media where he monitors newswires and business internet sites. He previously worked in the wine trade and has lived in southwest London for 18 years. John grew up in Bristol and is in his fifth decade as a Bristol City fan. After a long and undistinguished career as a club cricketer he has recently taken up golf, reasoning that his lack of foot movement will be an asset. John is also interested in City churches and pubs.
view more articles by John Kirk
