Fabio Capello is refusing to get carried away by England's perfect start to their World Cup qualifying campaign but had words of high praise for David Beckham.
England registered their fifth consecutive win by beating Ukraine at Wembley on Wednesday and now have a five-point advantage over both Ukraine and Croatia in their World Cup qualifying group. Barring a calamitous run, it is difficult to see England failing to reach next summer's finals in South Africa. However, Capello is keeping his feet firmly planted on the ground.
"We are in a very good position," he admitted. "It is the best position because we have five victories from five matches. We still have to play half our games but I understand the situation."
If England do make it through, Beckham can count on being among the 23-strong party. Beckham celebrates his 34th birthday next month but he remains a pivotal figure and Capello was quick to laud the midfielder's contribution in midweek, when he provided the free-kick from which Steven Gerrard set up John Terry's late winner. "At corners, free-kicks and crosses, Beckham is very important," observed Capello. "He is still one of the best in the world."
Capello must now sit back and watch the club game take centre stage again as the season reaches its climax. Players from Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United, plus Arsenal's Theo Walcott, are all at risk of joining up for the next qualifier in Kazakhstan on 6 June on the back of a draining week that starts with the last round of Premier League fixtures and also includes the Champions League and FA Cup finals.
Yet Capello is acutely aware his planning for a game at such a late stage of the campaign could be hampered as clubs want players either to rest or have much-needed surgery so they are back again for the new season. Nevertheless, the Italian is hoping for a repeat of last season's all-English showdown when Europe's greatest club prize is handed out in Rome on 27 May.
"I hope the Champions League final will be between two English teams," he said. "Afterwards I hope the best players will be with me for the preparation for these two games. At this moment I do not know which players will play. I will wait for the Champions League final and then select the best ones who are fit."
Given the diligent manner in which Capello approaches his job, he will have a strategy in place long before then. It is a dilemma Capello tried to avoid when the fixtures were thrashed out at a meeting in Zagreb just after his appointment to succeed Steve McClaren. So far, it is just about the only area in which he has met with failure.
"Fifa decided the dates we could play, which created a problem for us," said the Italian. "It was impossible to play Kazakhstan before then because of the snow and when we were arranging the fixtures we asked Andorra if we could play them during February but they refused."
