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By Julien Pretot
PARIS, March 26 - David Beckham showed he could
still play a role for England when he won his 100th cap in a 1-0
defeat to France in a friendly on Wednesday.
The LA Galaxy midfielder looked a little rusty at times but
gave a typically hard-working performance at the Stade de France
and was involved in much of England's attacking play before
being replaced by David Bentley in the 63rd minute.
The 32-year-old, who made his England debut against Moldova
in a World Cup qualifier in September 1996, is only the fifth
English player to achieve a century of appearances for his
country.
Billy Wright (105 caps) was the first to reach the milestone
in 1959 and was subsequently followed by Bobby Charlton (106),
Bobby Moore (108) and England's all-time record appearance
holder Peter Shilton (125).
Beckham won his 99th cap in England's 3-2 home defeat
against Croatia in a Euro qualifier at Wembley last November,
his last competitive match in Europe.
Camera flashes sparkled around the stadium when the former
Manchester United favourite took his first corner kick, which
was cleared by the French defence in the sixth minute.
Beckham then fell centimetres short of netting his 18th
goal for his country when he failed to connect at the far post
with a low Ashley Cole cross.
Wearing golden boots to mark the milestone, Beckham also got
the opportunity to show his defending skills, often switching to
a full back position with former United team mate Wes Brown.
He picked up a yellow card eight minutes before the interval
when his lack of condition forced him to pull Franck Ribery's
shirt.
Beckham saved his team from the threat posed by Nicolas
Anelka by beating the Chelsea forward to the ball just before
being replaced by Bentley to a standing ovation from both the
French and English fans.
His last contribution was a trademark 50-metre crossfield
pass to Stewart Downing.
Then his number flashed up on the replacement board and he
left applauding the fans who were cheering him.
After being overlooked by coach Fabio Capello for a friendly
against Switzerland last month, he can now hope to be recalled
for England's next game against the United States on May 28 at
Wembley.
(Editing by Alan Baldwin)