Mcclaren Coy Over Beckham England Recall

David Beckham will discover tomorrow whether his return to form with Real Madrid has persuaded Steve McClaren to resurrect his England career. McClaren, desperate to boost his own popularity, has given serious consideration to recalling the former captain for the friendly against Brazil next Friday and the Euro 2008 qualifier in Estonia five days later.

The squad will be announced in the morning and a campaign has been growing for Beckham's return after an impressive series of performances to help Real Madrid to the top of La Liga. On the one hand, McClaren is acutely aware that a recall would be an embarrassing climbdown but, on the other, he knows it would be a popular decision.

McClaren has been reluctant to speak about Beckham over the last 10 months but last night he confirmed the midfielder is in his thoughts. "I keep my eye on everybody and I said from day one that David's form would be monitored," he said. "I never said the door was closed on David Beckham."

Intriguingly, McClaren spoke about the need for experienced players at a time when England are in danger of failing to qualify for Euro 2008. "Experience is going to be key," he said. "Playing for your club is one thing, playing in the Champions League and cup finals is one thing, but playing for your country is a huge step up. We need players with experience who can handle that."

He was reminded that Beckham fitted the criteria. "There are quite a few who do," he replied. "We will see on Saturday morning. There has been a lot of speculation. I am naming the squad on Saturday and everyone will find out then."

McClaren added to the speculation when he was asked whether he had spoken to Beckham. "It's not an issue," he replied, but added: "It may be after Saturday."

Of more immediacy is the England B match against Albania at Burnley tonight, and McClaren confirmed Michael Owen would captain an experimental 4-4-2 line-up on his first international appearance since rupturing his knee ligaments in the World Cup.

England B (4-4-2): Carson (Liverpool); P Neville (Everton),

King (Tottenham), Dawson (Tottenham), Shorey (Reading); Lennon (Tottenham), Barry (Aston Villa), Jenas (Tottenham), Bentley (Blackburn); Owen (Newcastle), Smith (Manchester Utd)