England got a boost ahead of Saturday's World Cup qualifier with Germany when captain David Beckham appeared to have shrugged off his groin injury as he returned to training today.
Beckham's first appearance at the national team's training headquarters on the eve of his fitness test in Munich will have been a welcome sight for manager Sven-Goran Eriksson.
The 28-year-old Manchester United playmaker completed a series of exercises with physio Alan Smith.
Smith jogged alongside Beckham as he ran across a training pitch and tested his groin injury - which left him visibly in pain at the weekend - with a range of stretches.
It was first feared that Beckham's injury could rob Eriksson of his most important player, but a scan showed a favourable result, raising hopes of his participation in the match.
Germany have a six points lead over England, who have a game in hand but as only one team qualifies directly England need to win to have a realistic chance of overhauling their great rival. -AFP