Beckham out of England squad

Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson revealed England captain David Beckham had been withdrawn from the squad for the friendly against Portugal at Old Trafford with a calf injury.

The midfielder was taken off towards the end of tonight’s 1-0 Barclaycard Premiership victory over Middlesbrough at Old Trafford.

“He has had a calf injury all week and he has done well to play tonight,” Ferguson told Sky Premiership Plus.

“But we have had to withdraw him from the international team.

“He has got a little pull in his left calf muscle which obviously is a concern for us because we have Bolton next Wednesday.”

Earlier today, Blackburn’s David Dunn was called up to the full England squad as a replacement for Newcastle winger Kieron Dyer.