SVEN-GÖRAN ERIKSSON HAS SPENT five years trying to scotch the idea that he will pick David Beckham whatever his form and whatever the circumstances. Exasperated by further pressing on the subject yesterday, the England head coach attempted his strongest rebuttal yet when he insisted that he was “not married to David Beckham, even if you think I am. I’m not even engaged to him.”

Beckham was certainly poor against Sweden on Tuesday night, but debate over his place in the team is misplaced. He deserves to start, if only for his excellence at set-pieces, but Eriksson must be willing to replace him with Aaron Lennon against Ecuador if England are struggling to break down the South Americans.

A more pressing concern for the Swede was England’s failure at set-pieces in Cologne. Eriksson told interrogators yesterday to “ask the players what happened because we defended very badly”. He said that the coaches had done adequate preparation work and the clear implication was that senior professionals had failed to heed their advice.

Eriksson said that his squad would be put through intensive practice before Sunday’s match in Stuttgart. The coaches must also decide whether to match Ecuador’s 4-4-2 system by playing Peter Crouch alongside Wayne Rooney, or use the Manchester United striker on his own in front of a five-man midfield.

Crouch started two of England’s three group matches and his demotion for the Sweden fixture stretched to four minutes courtesy of Michael Owen’s injury. The 25-year-old has amassed six goals in his past six England matches and while the analogy brought a depreciating response, “blimey, that’s a lot to live up to,” Crouch’s position bears comparison to 1966, when Geoff Hurst displaced Jimmy Greaves.

“He took his chance and I would love to emulate that,” Crouch said. “It’s the kind of thing you dream about as a kid and I’m in a similar situation in that injuries have got me into the team. At the start of the tournament, I’m sure Wayne Rooney and Michael were first choice, but with them both having problems I’ve had more of a chance. Hopefully, I’ve done well enough to stake a claim for the rest of the games.

“There’s a big void to fill, but I wouldn’t say it was daunting for me. I’ve just got to do what I can do. Losing Michael is a big blow, terrible for him and bad for the squad, because he’s been our main foward, but we’ve got a competition to play, I’m confident in my ability and I believe I can do a good job and help us progress.”

At 6ft 7in, Crouch is a giant of the genial variety, but he bristled with annoyance at the suggestion that his presence converts England into a predictable side. The evidence only partially supports his argument — too often against Paraguay and Trinidad & Tobago, he was misused by his team-mates — but, in spite of his height, heading is not a strength.

“It’s frustrating to hear that because I’m tall and different to Michael and Wayne, that we’re going to play long-ball,” he said. “I resent it, to be honest. Yes, it’s an option, but it isn’t one we should be using all the time. You can see that when I’m in the team. Against Sweden we didn’t play long balls except for a couple of times, and passing to feet is the best way for us.

“I prefer to play the right way. That was how I was brought up, playing football on the floor, and in international football you can’t knock high balls into the box and hope for the best. That won’t get you anywhere. You’ve got to be more cute than that. As a squad, we’ve got too much talent to be satisfied by playing like that, and belief that we can pass well against sides.”

The Liverpool striker sees optimistic signs in his nascent partnership with Rooney. “I’m obviously going to say that Wayne will benefit more from me playing, but that’s the manager’s decision,” Crouch said. “Wayne could play with me or on his own because he’s a talented player, but I think we complement each other. Given a chance, I think everyone will see the benefits.

“Wayne likes to drop deep and create things, and that means I can stretch the team and give us more of a threat up front. With him dropping deep, that’s going to help me, because he’ll be linking things up and that’ll give me more of a chance in the box. It worked against Sweden, especially in the first half. We honestly feel we can sustain that now.”

Crouch missed a sitter in the encounter with Trinidad & Tobago but the difficulties, loan moves and tribulations of his early career provide perspective and fortitude. “I’m not the kind of character to hide,” he said, “and maybe the fact that I’ve had to bounce back so many times has given me a good attitude.

“As a striker, you can’t hide — you have to put yourself out there — but I feel as good as I ever have done. I hope I’m taken seriously now.”