Beckham lob nets the acclaim

PELE missed and Alex Ferguson reckons Nayim's was a mis-kick. It took one of Manchester United's young pretenders to show the world how to look up, take aim and score with a dazzling premeditated lob from halfway. And it came as no surprise that man was David Beckham.

If life is sweet for United at the moment, it is a dream for their London born midfielder whose exploits on his return to the capital could well have sealed his inclusion in Glenn Hoddle's first England squad to be announced on Thursday.

Having scored the goal that put United into the FA Cup final, adding another in the Charity shield, and having impressed Hoddle playing in the summer under 21 tournament in Toulon, the writing could soon be on the team sheet.

So much for speculation that the arrival of Karel Poborsky and Jordi Cruyff would force the floppy haired Beckham to the fringe of the United team. His passing, positional sense and ability to do the simple and difficult things well have become too important to Ferguson's thinking.

And to recall that just over a year ago this precocious graduate of the United youth side was on loan to Preston, wondering where his career was going in a division where all fame brought him was a memorable kicking from Fulham's Terry Hurlock.

"The move did worry me," he says in broadest cockney. "But now accept I was a bit behind the other lads at United, who seemed to be making more progress than me.

Since returning to Old Trafford he has been a revelation, either on the wing or tucked inside dispensing cool imagination and guile to the United midfield.

It is all he ever wanted. Despite coming from Leytonstone, United were always his team his bedroom wall plastered with pictures of the idols he was soon to join. He was even a graduate of the Bobby Charlton soccer school and at 15 turned down all interest elsewhere to travel north and personally offer himself to the club of his dreams.

Now he is on England's doorstep, but as he awaits his first call up Ferguson, rightly, offers caution. "David is young and there is a long way to go yet," he says. "But I think he can handle an England call up alright. We'll just nurse him the way we have been doing."

Funnily enough, observers reckoned this was Beckham's least effective game for United compared to those in pre season early on he was out jumped, easily bundled off the ball and struggled with his passing.

But once he moved inside from his wide right posting he began to find his feet. His was the tackle that led to Roy Keane's bolt down the right to eventually set up Eric Cantona for a brilliantly clinical finish.

Beckham was also influentially, involved in the triangle of passes that released Denis Irwin into the area for another deadly finish for United's second.

Wimbledon had their chances, Peter Schmeichel pulling off two fine saves. But Keane also hit the bar and the longer the game went on the more imperious United looked with Cruyff, particularly, impressing as a central striker.

Then, seconds into injury time, came Beckham's 55 yard lofted iron shot to the back of the net. "Goal of the season already," predicted Ferguson.

Poborsky, who knows all about the fame a lob can bring, watched from the subs bench, deliberately protected from the effects of a Premiership debut against the Crazy Gang. But the Czech will play against Everton on Wednesday, with Beckham moving inside following the loss of Keane for three weeks to a knee operation.

With Nicky Butt suffering migraine and Cantona nursing a sore thigh, this will offer an early test for Ferguson's beefed up squad. As for the title, United already sit atop the Premiership on alphabetical order from Forest. But just as it was silly to write off their championship hopes last season after the opening day defeat by Aston Villa, so it would be silly to crown them champions now. Though not quite as silly.