HE'S SIGNING FOR NO ONE

From FA Premier’s site:

David Beckham is almost certain to head north to Manchester on Friday to allow Old Trafford medical staff to assess the extent of his broken hand.

He suffered the injury after landing awkwardly under a hefty first-half challenge from Thabang Molefe and though he played on, the 28-year-old was clearly in considerable pain and was eventually rushed to hospital after being substituted five minutes into the second-half.

X-rays confirmed the break, which usually has a recovery time of six weeks, although fears that he would not be allowed to make the 11-hour return flight to England were swiftly allayed and he was able to join his victorious team-mates on the coach to the airport.

Although the injury should have not any professional effect on Beckham as it was due to be his last game of the season anyway, United will no doubt be keen to ensure there are no complications with his recovery.

"At this stage we are not sure of the extent of the injury and how long David will need treatment for," said FA spokesman Adrian Bevington.

"It has been confirmed he has suffered a fractured scaphoid, which is a bone at the bottom of the thumb leading into the wrist bone.”

Match report from the Guardian:

David Beckham's right wrist claimed the attention recently devoted to his hair-do last night when the England captain left the pitch early in the second half of England's latest friendly and headed for the x-ray department of the nearest hospital, where a broken bone was revealed.

The wrist had been injured in the opening half-hour of a surprisingly competitive match, when Beckham went down under a challenge for which Thabang Molefe, the South Africa left-back, was cautioned.

Sven-Goran Eriksson said on Tuesday that he would rather lose this game than lose a player to injury before the Euro 2004 qualifying match against Slovakia in three weeks' time. Beckham, of course, is suspended for that fixture, and the manager will take comfort from England's generally competent performance, in which Gareth Southgate claimed the second fastest goal ever scored by an England player, Danny Mills' hand-ball offence gave Benni McCarthy an early opportunity to level the scores, and Emile Heskey restored England's lead with around half an hour to play.

The night had started brightly when England's supporters actually applauded a foreign national anthem and Southgate rose to glance home Beckham's free-kick with the match only 35 seconds old, leaving Bryan Robson, who scored after 27 seconds against France in the 1982 World Cup finals, still in possession of the record.

The local fans responded warmly whenever a player of either side gave a hint of a backheel, a nutmeg or a step-over. Since most of them appear to couple their support for Kaizer Chiefs or Orlando Pirates with an equally passionate commitment to Manchester United, England will rarely play an away fixture to a warmer reception. The visitors did their bit to give pleasure without abandoning their principles.

Most of the spectators even seemed delighted when Lucas Radebe's foul on Michael Owen after 15 seconds gave Beckham an early chance to demonstrate his prowess from a set-piece. His free-kick, curled in from wide on the right, met the forehead of Southgate, who glanced the ball home at the near post for his second goal in 53 appearances.

Five minutes into the second half Beckham gave a last wave to the crowd and disappeared down the tunnel for a hospital appointment, Jermaine Jenas assuming his position on the right of midfield.

South Africa (4-4-2) : Baloyi (Kaizer Chiefs); Mabizela (Orlando Pirates), Radebe (Leeds United), A Mokoena (Beerschott), Molefe (Jomo Cosmos); Fredericks (Kaizer Chiefs; Mazibuko , Bush Bucks75), T Mokoena (Jomo Cosmos), Sibaya (FC Rubin Kazan), Buckley (FC Bochum); McCarthy (Celta Vigo; Manyathela, Orlando Pirates, 65), Bartlett (Charlton Athletic).

Booked: Mabizela, Molefe.

England (4-4-2) : James (West Ham; Robinson, Leeds, h-t); Mills (Leeds), Ferdinand ( Manchester United; Upson, Birmingham, h-t), Southgate (Middlesbrough), P Neville (Manchester United); Beckham (Manchester United; Jenas, Newcastle United, 51), Scholes (Manchester United; Cole, West Ham, 74), Gerrard (Liverpool; Barry, Aston Villa, 81), Sinclair (West Ham; Lampard, Chelsea, 58); Heskey (Liverpool; Vassell, Aston Villa, 66), Owen (Liverpool).

Booked: Mills.

Subscribe to the Red Issue magazine on line:

United Kingdom £18.50

Europe and Ireland £22

Rest Of World £29

Telephone Orders:

Phone: 0870 8720200 quoting Product Ref: 1065/631698

Lines open Monday to Friday 09-00 to 17-30 hrs

Referee: Lim Kee Chong (Mauritius)