David Beckham's bid to become first Englishman to play in four finals ends in tears

Published on Monday 15 March 2010 00:59

DAVID Beckham will fly to Finland today to have an operation on the Achilles tendon he injured during AC Milan's Serie A game with Chievo last night.

The 34-year-old England midfielder is already facing up to missing the World Cup in South Africa this summer but also faces the prospect of the injury ending his career.

Club physician Jean Pierre Meersseman told Italy's Sky TV that Beckham will be treated by specialist surgeon Sakari Orava. "He'll go to Finland tomorrow and will be operated on probably tomorrow afternoon or Tuesday morning," Meersseman said.

England coach Fabio Capello spoke with Beckham last night to offer his commiserations.

The injury ended Beckham's hopes of featuring in a fourth World Cup for his country and both Capello and his assistant Franco Baldini were on the phone to offer their best wishes for Beckham to ultimately make a full recovery, knowing they could write the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star out of their own plans for South Africa.

Beckham sustained the injury without coming into contact with anyone else, limping to the sidelines for treatment in a match Milan went on to win 1-0.

Visibly in pain and in tears, Beckham went to the sideline for medical attention, leaving Milan with ten men since all three substitutes had already been used.

"He felt the muscle begin to come up, which is a typical symptom when you break an Achilles' tendon," said Milan coach Leonardo. "This is a real blow."

It was reported that Beckham said, 'It's broken, it's broken," when he came off. "He's in a lot of pain," said midfielder Clarence Seedorf, who scored the winning goal after Beckham hobbled off. "This is really bad."

Returning to the starting lineup after Milan's 4-0 Champions League loss to Manchester United, Beckham was also treated for a deep cut to his right cheek following a collision early in the first half.

With the game still 0-0, Beckham nearly scored in the 84th, but Chievo goalkeeper Stefano Sorrentino stopped his close-range effort.

"He was in tears. He didn't say very much," teammate Ignazio Abate said after the game.

With 115 appearances, Beckham holds the record number of caps for England as an outfield player.

"He'll probably be out for five or six months," said Milan vice president Adriano Galliani. "I saw him really suffering. In the changing room I hugged him and told him that if he wants he can join us next year, too.

"He came to Milan to be called up by Capello. Unfortunately that's football. He's got a great strength of soul."

Milan defender Gianluca Zambrotta added that, "It's never nice when a teammate gets hurt, especially in the manner in which it happened to David tonight.

"Beckham came here because he wanted to help Milan return to the top and he was looking to get a jersey for the national team and participate in the World Cup," Zambrotta added. "If other victories come, there will surely be a dedication for David Beckham."

Although Beckham spoke of his fear of missing the World Cup in the wake of Milan's hammering by Manchester United last week, there was little doubt he would have made Capello's final 23.

His ability at set pieces remains unmatched in the England squad and Capello viewed Beckham's experience as a vital tool in his side being able to wind the clock down in tight situations.

Now England will have to cope without that assistance, with Capello suddenly seeing his right-sided options starting to dwindle given Harry Redknapp has revealed Aaron Lennon is nowhere near a comeback from a groin injury that has plagued him since December.

Those fitness problems should bolster the chances of both Theo Walcott and Shaun Wright-Phillips being involved.

Capello also knows the ultra-reliable James Milner could always fill in if necessary, although the Aston Villa man lacks the pace required to be a first-choice wide-man.

If England did go with Walcott and Wright-Phillips, it would enhance the chances of Joe Cole – whose recent form has been patchy – and Stewart Downing.

However, the left-field option would be Manchester City new-boy Adam Johnson. Former England defender Danny Mills was championing Johnson's England claims this afternoon, even though the former Middlesbrough man was only a substitute for City at Sunderland yesterday afternoon.

The winger made a big impact though, scoring a superb injury-time goal to earn City a point.

So, whilst he is yet to earn a full cap – or even a senior call-up – it would be no surprise if Johnson was selected in amongst the 30 players Capello intends to take to two training camps in Austria immediately after the FA Cup final on 15 May.