Eriksson must rebuild diamond

SVEN-GORAN ERIKSSON must rebuild his midfield diamond virtually from scratch for this weekend’s Euro 2004 qualifier in Macedonia as his preparations have been hit by a damaging raft of injuries.

Steven Gerrard and Trevor Sinclair have joined Paul Scholes on the injury list, while Nicky Butt and Kieron Dyer also have concerns over their match-fitness.

With David Beckham facing Villarreal last night, Eriksson effectively has just one confirmed midfield starter Frank Lampard, who did not even feature in the starting line-up against Croatia last month.