Pick Beckham, urges Grip

Sven-Goran Eriksson’s assistant Tord Grip insists David Beckham should still be playing for England.

The Real Madrid midfielder has been out of the England squad since Steve McClaren took over the England job after the World Cup.

However, Grip, who worked alongside Eriksson with England for six years, believes Beckham can revive the national team’s fortunes after four games without a win.

Grip told the Sun: “You cannot build for the future if you’re losing matches - and you can’t afford to lose matches now.

“I think you should always pick your best players, whether you’re building for the future or not.

“And Beckham was in really excellent form for Real Madrid against Bayern Munich.

“I don’t know what Steve is planning to do but if Beckham continues to play like he did against Bayern, then it shows what an excellent player he still is.

“David did really well for us over the years and is still excellent.”