David Beckham’s name was in headlines again Thursday as the big omission from Coach Fabio Capello’s first England squad. However/as usual/once again, the door was not completely shut on Beckham’s England career, as Capello said he didn’t choose the former England captain because he hadn’t played a competitive match since November.
Even so, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger says he was “amazed by how good” the L.A. Galaxy midfielder was during his month-long training stint with the Gunners. “We gave him the first two weeks exclusively on fitness work with [fitness coach] Tony Colbert,” Wenger said. “After [that)] he was with us in and out but in the third week he was a lot with us, and we were all amazed how good he was.”
The Frenchman understood coach Capello’s decision to drop the 32-year-old for the Switzerland friendly, but he insisted, “the English national team still needs Beckham because he can still make decisions and his experience will be needed in the big games and that is why I am sure he will get his 100th cap … Having worked with Beckham here I must say one thing. He has worked extremely hard, that this guy will not give up and will continue to fight.”