The end could come any day and David Beckham knows there will be no ceremony, no grand announcement, not even a phone call. One day he will turn on the television and discover that he has been left out of the England squad. And that will be that. If it would seem an oddly low-key end to a career that might have been shaped by a Hollywood scriptwriter, Beckham is perfectly at ease with the idea of a quiet exit.

There was a time when he would have talked of his desperation to play in the 2010 World Cup, of his dreams of winning it, of adding another dramatic chapter. But call it age, call it experience, call it the cold realities of life under Fabio Capello. Call it the contentment that comes from having won his 100th cap.

The Beckham who sat down in southern California at the weekend was at ease with whatever awaits him. He just wants to enjoy the days that are left rather than trying to live up to Roy of the Rovers storylines.

“I won't get a phone call when I'm left out, and I won't expect one,” Beckham said. “There are managers who do that. Sir Alex Ferguson would pull you in on a Saturday morning and give you a reason for dropping you, even if you'd be telling him that you wanted to play, that you weren't tired.

“But with the manager [Capello] I could be sitting at home one day and not be in the squad and it is all over, and I won't complain. I just need to know that I have done as much as I can.”

If it sounds like Beckham is preparing for the end, that would be misleading. He expects to play for his country for the foreseeable future. But these days he speaks like a man who is counting his blessings at the end of a long career rather than raging against the dying of the light.

“Steve Bruce, one of the best defenders in England and Europe, didn't get a single cap,” he points out. “I'd love to win something with England but, after 102 games, 59 as captain, I can be very happy looking back.” He was so at ease that, invited to put David Bentley in his place, he had only praise for a young rival. “He makes me laugh, he's got great banter. He's a London lad, quite cocky with it.” Which is exactly what Beckham's team-mates used to say about him.

“Every time he's spoken about me, he's been very complimentary and I have thanked him for that. I don't see it as a rivalry,” Beckham added. “If he's playing, I support him. I've been around a while, I've got the experience and I will happily pass that on.” There was also his insistence that someone else should take on the captain's armband even though, in leading the team out against Trinidad & Tobago last month, Beckham appeared to come into contention. “I'd never turn it down but I do think there are a lot other candidates who deserve it,” he said. “Rio Ferdinand, JT [John Terry], Steven Gerrard. Wayne Rooney's young but he can be a leader.

“I wouldn't like to say I have enjoyed my recent caps more than previous ones because I've been very proud of them all. But the fact that people doubted my age, then the fact that I was playing in the USA and I'm still out there playing for my country, and captaining them, well it is good to know I can still prove people wrong. I've always enjoyed doing that.

“I didn't think I would be here. When I was left out [by Steve McClaren] at the start of the Euro [2008] qualifiers, I just thought ‘that's it, that's my England career done'. So it is not a question of taking it or leaving it now. It is just that I have seen before how quickly it can all get taken away from you.” Enjoy each game, he said, as though it might be your last.

On form and fitness, Beckham will be involved with England at the start of the World Cup qualifiers in the autumn. Capello has already demonstrated that he will not hold the weakness of Major League Soccer (MLS) against Beckham, who led the LA Galaxy to a 3-0 victory at San Jose on Saturday, drawing a record crowd of 39,872 for the Earthquakes.

Match sharpness is the key that should become an issue only next February and March, close season for the MLS. Beckham has ruled out going to a Barclays Premier League club on loan during the winter - “I don't think the Galaxy would want me risking injury” - but he intends to train as he did with Arsenal last January.

It is to Beckham's benefit that Capello knows exactly what he will get from the 33-year-old. Dismayed by the mental fragility of his squad, the Italian has turned to reliable old hands.

“That is what he did at Real Madrid,” Beckham said. “First and foremost he made us a tough team to beat. It's his whole manner, that intensity. He makes you sit up straight in class.

“I have never known an England squad to be on the bus 15 minutes before we leave but every single one of the players has been there. The players aren't scared but they're definitely on their toes. You watch how you prepare, what you eat, going to your room at 11pm. He is very intense but if you work hard for him, you get rewards.” It was as an “England superstar” that Beckham appeared at the Special Olympics in Long Beach at the weekend to make presentations. “He's shorter than I thought,” one fan at the back said. Compared with basketball players, perhaps.

From there, Beckham dashed to the Staples Centre to watch the LA Lakers keep alive the NBA finals with a victory over the Boston Celtics. He has been a regular at home games, befriending Kobe Bryant. “I like most sports, especially ones that are fast and furious,” Beckham said.

Pictures of Beckham in Napa Valley have sparked speculation that he has bought his own vineyard. He would say only that he and wife Victoria are “big red wine fans. It's nice to take the kids down there in the harvest.” If it sounds like plans for retirement, Beckham insisted that there is a lot of football left in him. It is just that he is not making long-term predictions. After all the ups and downs, he knows better than to do that.

David Beckham was speaking on behalf of National Express, official supporter of the England team.

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