Madrid, Oct 06: England skipper David Beckham shrugged off fears over his fitness ahead of the crucial Euro 2004 showdown against Turkey next weekend as he put in a sparkling performance to help Real Madrid to a 2-1 win over Espanyol.
Despite having to limp off towards the end of the game at the Bernabeu yesterday, Beckham, who missed his team's Champions League win over Porto in midweek because of a foot injury, revealed that he was suffering only from a dead leg.
The news that he wasn't seriously hurt will come as a huge boost for England coach Goran Eriksson who will today name his squad to face Turkey in Istanbul on Saturday where a point will take them into the finals in Portugal next summer.
"Turkey is a big game and there will be plenty of others to come," said Beckham, who injured his foot in the 2-0 defeat at Valencia a week ago.
He also admitted that the patience shown by Real yesterday, when they had to wait until the second half to secure the goals for victory, will stand him in good stead for the intimidating atmosphere he and his teammates will face in Turkey next week.



"We had to be very patient out there tonight and we were very frustrated at half-time," said Beckham.



Beckham showed few signs of the injury during the match. He produced another sterling display which including providing the pass from which Ronaldo headed his and his team's second goal, nine minutes from time.


Bureau Report