David Beckham, apparently, is “encouraged” by the conversation he had with Fabio Capello last night, when the Italian told him he would not be selecting him in his first England squad to face Switzerland at Wembley next Wednesday. He is encouraged, presumably, because he was told that the door is still open – get yourself fit, he was assured, and that magical 100th cap will be yours.

As Capello named his first England squad this afternoon, though, it was increasingly difficult to see a way back for Beckham – unless a recall comes in the form of a charitable inclusion to give him his century in one of the coming friendly matches before ushering him into retirement. That, it now seems, is the best that the former captain can hope for as he strives to build up his fitness before the start of the new MLS campaign in late March.

After a whistle-stop tour of the Premier League over the past three-and-a-half weeks, Capello has come up with some intriguing names and, if the uncapped Aston Villa duo of Curtis Davies and Gabriel Agbonlahor were the names that leapt out, the inclusion of Shaun Wright-Phillips and David Bentley ahead of Beckham to battle for the place on the right-hand side of midfield is also noteworthy. Lacking fitness or not, Beckham might yet won a call-up had Capello not been happy with the alternatives he has found in that position – not forgetting Aaron Lennon, who on this occasion will play in Stuart Pearce’s Under-21 squad.

It is a squad that is full of talking points – no Paul Robinson, no Phil Neville, no Dave Kitson, as had been mooted, and, contrary to rumours this morning, a place for an out-of-form Michael Owen – but it is one with which few can take issue. At risk of upsetting the many Beckham disciples all over the world, Capello has made absolutely the right decision with regard to the former captain. Beckham has not played a competitive match since England’s calamitous final Euro 2008 qualifying match against Croatia in November and, while he may have made great play of his training sessions with Arsenal prior to his very public trips to Sierra Leone and Brazil in the past week or so, the 32-year-old LA Galaxy midfield player cannot claim he is sufficiently match-fit to win a 100th cap on merit, as opposed to sentiment, at present.

As for the rest of the squad, it will be interesting to see which of the three goalkeepers – David James, Scott Carson and Chris Kirkland – have impressed Capello most and whether players such as Glen Johnson, Matthew Upson, Davies and Agbonlahor survive the cut when the squad is trimmed to around 23 names before they meet in Hertfordshire on Sunday. Agbonlahor and Luke Young, his Aston Villa team-mate, would be exciting selections against Switzerland as Capello looks to kick off a new era, one in which the former captain is in danger of being left behind.

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