From the Guardian...
The arrangement allows England to benefit from the David Beckham circus without the distraction of his football skills
David Beckham could be worth more to England off the pitch at the World Cup than on it if Fabio Capello is imaginative in his definition of the '24th man' role.
Let me begin by saying that it is in no way an indication of some national psychiatric malaise that within hours of David Beckham being confirmed as out of the World Cup, urgent moves to fashion a "24th man" role for him at the tournament were already well under way. According to a range of reports, Fabio Capello and the FA will invite Beckham to travel to South Africa in what is described as a "special role", with pundits gibbering about both his importance as a mentor to the England squad and his peerless lobbying skills for England's 2018 World Cup bid.
As yet, this special role remains tantalisingly undefined in formal terms, with the above brief placing him somewhere between a brilliant but twinkly-eyed diplomat in the mould of Ben Franklin, and Linus van Pelt's security blanket in Peanuts. But the arrangement is a triumph of logic, ideally allowing the England set-up to benefit from the David Beckham circus without the irritating distraction of any of his football skills.
Certainly, there will be a few who imagine this to be the worst of both worlds, but optimists should regard Beckham's personally devastating injury as what David St Hubbins once called "a great freeing-up of time", permitting those self-assured national bigwigs to deputise him to perform any number of vital functions they lack the wit or charm to perform themselves.
Read more about Beckham may still make the England World Cup Squad...
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