David Beckham will miss this summer’s World Cup finals after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon that could threaten his career.
The former England captain limped to the touchline close to the end of AC Milan’s 1-0 win over Chievo last night. He was carried from the pitch and left San Siro on crutches. He is likely to be sidelined for at least three months, with Milan speculating that he could be out for twice as long. The injury ends his hopes of becoming the first England player to appear in four World Cups.
Fabio Capello, the England manager, telephoned Beckham last night to offer his best wishes for a full recovery, but he must now write the 34-year-old out of his plans. Jean Pierre Meersseman,
nike mercurial talaria fg, the Milan club doctor, said that Beckham would fly to Finland this morning to be operated on by a specialist. But even if he makes a full recovery by mid-June — the best prognosis — he will not be fit for England’s first World Cup group game against United States in Rustenburg on June 12.
Beckham will also have missed the entire build-up to the tournament in South Africa, and memories of his previous attempt to recover from a serious pre-World Cup injury are still fresh. Beckham broke a metatarsal in his right foot in April 2002 and was not fully fit for the World Cup later that year, when England went out in the quarter-finals.
Beckham is England’s most-capped outfield player with 115 caps. He rejoined Milan in January for his second spell on loan at the club from the Los Angeles Galaxy, during their offseason from Major League Soccer, to safeguard his place in the England squad place.
However, he has not been an automatic first choice for Milan and began the Champions League round-of-16, second-leg match away to Manchester United, his former club, last week on the substitutes’ bench. Now, bearing in mind that he will be 35 in May, he has almost certainly played his last game for England.
Beckham was unchallenged when he pulled up in the 88th minute of last night’s 1-0 victory. He grasped his left ankle before making a “broken” gesture with his hands. He limped off the field in tears, repeating: “It’s broken,
chaussure nike mercurial, it’s broken,
offres mercurial vapo,” according to reporters.
“David’s injury makes us sick,” Leonardo, the Milan coach, said. “When I think of his personal history, everything I know about him, how hard he works, I feel so bad for him.
“Tonight was a very important win for us, but David’s news definitely puts a downer on the evening. David knew he was injured immediately.”