For a time from 1998 to 2001, when he was at the peak of his powers as an inspirational figure for Manchester United and England, David Beckham was among the best players in the world. Not one of the very best, perhaps, but he was up there in the top ten or so and the hype, while excessive, was something you could understand.

Almost a decade on, Beckham-mania persists. Why? What is it about him that prompts sane judges — among them Steve Bruce, the Sunderland manager, who named him man of the match against Belarus on Wednesday — to swoon as if in the presence of greatness?

It surely cannot be his looks or his celebrity, but strip away the hype and the later stages of his career amount to little more than a glorified farewell tour, from Madrid to Los Angeles to Milan, passing milestones but rarely, if ever, achieving anything of note.

His performance at Wembley, in a game that had slowed to testimonial pace, was his best in an England shirt since a European Championship qualifying match against those other international heavyweights, Estonia, at the end of the 2006-07 campaign. A masterclass it was not, but it only takes a semblance of a performance — a couple of well-struck passes, an inventive corner kick, even the odd sprint — to prompt ludicrous talk of him “getting back to his best”.

The former captain’s best was almost a decade ago. There have been odd flourishes since then — the first and last few months of his four years at Real Madrid, the first few weeks of his spell at AC Milan — but Sir Alex Ferguson was right when he concluded in 2003 that Beckham’s star was already on the wane.

Age is not a barrier to performing at the highest level — look at Ryan Giggs, still going strong as his 36th birthday approaches — but, for Beckham, who will be 35 by next June, it is a concern. Capello acknowledged as much by leaving him out of the 18-man squad to face Ukraine on Saturday.

The question is whether Beckham merits a place in the squad for South Africa. One can only judge at the time, but to look at the early-season form of Aaron Lennon and the promise of Theo Walcott, there can be no guarantees. Shaun Wright-Phillips, Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, Owen Hargreaves and James Milner can perform on the right side. His best chance may lie in the centre of midfield, but only if Hargreaves and Michael Carrick fail to recover fitness and form respectively.

A fully fit, on-form Beckham would be an asset to any squad, but a 32-minute run-out against Belarus is no basis on which to end the debate. To pick him on his name alone — or on some spurious ground about what he “brings to the squad” — is simply not enough.

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