England manager Fabio Capello confirmed yesterday that David Beckham is expected to miss the World Cup after suffering a ruptured Achilles tendon.
The 34-year-old former England captain was hurt in AC Milan’s 1-0 Serie A win over Chievo at the San Siro on Sunday night.
Capello said he had spoken to the midfielder and it was now likely he would miss the showpiece event in South Africa this summer.
“We have to wait for the results of the scan, but it looks like he is out of the World Cup,” Capello said.
“I spoke with him after the game on Sunday night to offer my support,” he said. “David is a great professional and has worked very hard to be ready for the World Cup, so missing it will be a big blow.”
But Beckham, who was set to fly to Finland for treatment by a specialist yesterday, said he hoped to make a “swift and full recovery.”
He explained: “I am on my way to Finland to see a specialist and have a scan on the injury. I am upset but want to thank everyone for their messages of support. I hope to make a swift and full recovery.”
Beckham pulled up in pain during Milan’s game without coming into contact with anyone else and limped distraught to the sidelines for treatment.
He was due to be operated on at the sports injury clinic of Mehilaeinen hospital in Turku, Finland yesterday afternoon, orthopedic surgeon Sakari Orava said.
AC Milan vice-president Adriano Galliani said that the player will be out for “probably five or six months,” which would rule Beckham out of a World Cup that gets underway in South Africa on June 11.
Beckham, desperate to play in a fourth World Cup finals, twisted his left ankle during the final minutes of Sunday’s match.
“This injury has been a heavy blow for him and for us. Unfortunately the party is ruined,” Milan coach Leonardo said.
Also See: LEGA CAICIO : Seedorf strikes late as Milan cut gap to one point
ADVANTAGE ATLETICO: Well off the pace in La Liga, the Copa del Rey represents Atletico Madrid’s best chance of silverware this season Atletico Madrid on Thursday hammered Copa del Rey holders Barcelona 4-0 in the first leg of their semi-final. After an Eric Garcia own-goal sent Diego Simeone’s side ahead early on, Antoine Griezmann, Ademola Lookman and Julian Alvarez struck to give Atletico a landslide lead by halftime. Barca defender Garcia was sent off in the final stages, with Atletico maintaining their significant advantage on the record 32-time winners, which they take into the second leg at the Camp Nou on March 3. Both sides missed good chances in the second half, with Barca’s Pau Cubarsi having a goal disallowed before Garcia was sent off
‘EVERYONE SAW’: The visitors were left fuming after Jules Kounde was fouled by Claudio Echeverri in the buildup to the winning goal and it went unpunished Spanish champions Barcelona on Monday fell to a damaging 2-1 defeat at Girona to leave them trailing Real Madrid by two points at the top of La Liga. Los Blancos beat Real Sociedad on Saturday to overtake the Catalans and Hansi Flick’s side could not defeat Girona in an gripping derby clash to reclaim the lead. Teenage star Lamine Yamal missed a penalty for Barcelona, who took the lead through defender Pau Cubarsi just before the hour mark. However, goals from Thomas Lemar and Fran Beltran helped Girona, 12th, mount an impressive comeback. “In the end Girona deserved it, they had a lot of
Stade Rennais, four days after firing coach Habib Beye, stunned Paris Saint-Germain 3-1 on Friday, snapping the defending champions’ seven-match winning run in French Ligue 1. Second-placed RC Lens could leapfrog the champions and retake top spot last night after press time if they beat Paris FC in the capital. PSG started brightly, with Ousmane Dembele and Desire Doue carving openings to no avail. Rennes fired Beye on Monday and promoted his assistant Sebastien Tambouret, and the same players who had lost four games on the bounce seemed transformed. Jordanian forward Mousa al-Tamari bagged the opener, unleashing a fierce strike
Dasun Shanaka hammered the fastest half-century by a Sri Lankan in T20Is as the cohosts thrashed Oman by 105 runs at the World Cup yesterday in Pallekele, Sri Lanka, for their second win in Group B. The 2014 champions piled up 225-5, the highest total of the tournament, before restricting an outclassed Oman to 120-9. The 43-year-old Mohammad Nadeem waged a lone battle for Oman, compiling an unbeaten 53 to become the oldest player to score a 50 in T20 World Cups. Having promoted himself up the order and under pressure to deliver, Sri Lanka skipper Shanaka smashed a 19-ball half-century. It has been
RSS