LONDON, May 24 -- England captain David Beckham heads to Germany knowing this
will probably be his last tilt at the World Cup before ending a career that has
brought him unrivalled fame and fortune.
Beckham, who turned 31 on May 2, has won a deserved reputation for his work
rate and stamina, both with Manchester United and Real Madrid.
He is, however, unlikely to be still holding down a high-energy midfield slot
in international football as a 35-year-old when the finals are hosted by South
Africa in 2010.
Having been famously sent off in France in 1998 and having suffered the
frustration of England's quarter-final exit in Japan in 2002, Germany is his
last, and probably best, chance of lifting the game's most coveted trophy.
Age will be a double-edged sword for a man who has won a string of trophies
at club level but who, like every England player since 1966, has yet to enjoy
success with his country.
Beckham is not quite as sharp as before and his free kicks certainly pose
less of a threat than they once did but his intense personal drive to succeed
should reach new heights in Germany, fuelled by that fear of making his final
appearance on the world's biggest stage.
Beckham scored twice in qualifying and although his impact fell short of the
dramatic free kick against Greece that propelled England into the 2002 World
Cup, he remains popular with team mates and has the unswerving support of coach
Sven-Goran Eriksson.
He also has bags of experience, which includes firing home a penalty winner
against Argentina at the last World Cup, and is a particularly valuable
commodity in a relatively young team.
Time is plentiful for players such as Wayne Rooney, his injury problems
notwithstanding, but it is fast running out for Beckham, although he has proved
the critics wrong so many times in the past that anything is possible.
Many predicted his move from Manchester United to Real Madrid would end in
failure and although he has failed to win a trophy in Spain, he has coped with
the intense media attention lavished on him and his pop star wife Victoria and
matured as a person.
With a vast personal fortune meaning he will have no money worries for the
rest of his life, all Beckham really wants now is a treasure that no money can
buy. It is not beyond the bounds of belief that he will find it in
Germany.
