Door not closed for Beckham, predicts Hoddle

Former England manager Glenn Hoddle has predicted an international return for David Beckham – but only if things start to get tough.

New England head coach Steve McClaren launched his competitive reign yesterday with a 5-0 victory over Andorra in a Euro 2008 qualifier having dispensed with the services of predecessor Sven-Goran Eriksson’s skipper.

The 31-year-old Real Madrid star has vowed to force his way back into McClaren’s plans and the former Middlesbrough boss has insisted the door remains open.

Hoddle believes Beckham could still have a role to play, if different to that in which he established himself on the world stage, and only if the going gets considerably more difficult.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live’s Sportsweek programme: “I think Steve is correct in saying that the door is not shut.

“If we had a really difficult group where I could see us getting on a sticky wicket, I think David would be brought back straight away, and rightly so.

“But I cannot see that with the group we have got... (and) the wide boys that played last night. Steven Gerrard can play there and put a wonderful cross in for the (Jermain) Defoe goal.

“I personally would prefer to see Steven in the centre of the pitch where he is going to hurt people even more. Then there is (Aaron) Lennon, and I would not cast out (Jermaine) Pennant at Liverpool.

“One of the things that lad needed to learn a little bit was when to use the ball early, and the crowd at Liverpool and the way they play will demand that from him and that will make him a better player.

“David Beckham has got a few people there, and it might be in the centre of the pitch where, if he does come back at all, that might be where Steve is going to use him.

“But I cannot see them getting themselves on a sticky wicket with the group we are in.”

Meanwhile Hoddle has called on the game’s governing bodies to resist the urge to force minnows like Andorra to pre-qualify for major tournaments.

He cited the emergence of Turkey and Greece as genuine forces in support of his argument and, while admitting Andorra are unlikely to follow suit, he insists they will improve by coming up against the best.

Hoddle said: “We played Greece and they were the whipping boys; we played Turkey and they were the whipping boys.

“In the end, now look what has happened: Turkey have got to a semi-final of the World Cup, Greece have won the European Championships.

“I am not saying Andorra are going to go on and do that, but they will improve if they continue over the next 15 years to play the top teams.

“That is why world football has become so difficult and the margins are so slim against a lot of these teams.

“At the moment, we have to drag our heels along to go through what we had to go through yesterday. The top international teams are not going to gain much from it.”

The satisfaction at England’s performance has been tempered by the quality of the opposition, but Hoddle insisted they could have done little more.

He said: “It was a bit of a mismatch. If it was a boxing match, they would have been throwing the towel in and people would have been asking for their money back.

“But the bottom line is, you have got to play those teams if they are drawn in your group, you have got to be professional about it and England were.

“It was a very good win for them. The fact that they scored some quality goals was important as well.

“They will have got something out of the game, obviously, but not a lot. You are on a hiding to nothing.

“They (Andorra) were very, very poor – probably the poorest that England have played.”