Sven-Goran Eriksson is prepared to take a World Cup gamble on David Beckham if the England captain's fitness is still in some doubt ahead of the tournament.

However, Eriksson is confident his influential midfielder will have recovered from the broken bone in his foot in time to make the opening game against Sweden on June 2.

And he was handed nine extra days to make up his mind when FIFA revealed Beckham could be replaced in England's 23-man squad, which has to be named on May 21, before the start of the tournament if his injury did not improve.

So while the England coach must still plan without Beckham for the first time in next week's friendly against Paraguay, he will pull out all the stops to prevent a repeat scenario at the World Cup.

Indeed, while he would prefer the midfielder to travel out with the rest of the squad on May 17, he would even be prepared to allow him to arrive later in Japan after further treatment at Old Trafford.

''When you talk about David Beckham, of course you are willing to take a chance as he's extremely important and is the England captain,'' said Eriksson.

''He's one of the best footballers in the world. If there's a small chance that he will be able to play, then of course we will take him.''

While Beckham was initially ruled out for up to eight weeks, an updated prognosis put his likely absence at about six weeks meaning he could be back in full training around May 22, just four days before England's final friendly against Cameroon.

Although he could suffer a relapse or recurrence, the element of risk has at least been reduced by FIFA's stance on injured players, which Eriksson had not been expecting due to the confusing regulations.

FIFA spokesman Andreas Herren revealed: ''It doesn't make any difference whether an injury is new, old or recurring as we know coaches would not use it as a tactical ploy.

''If the England team were to nominate David Beckham in their squad in the hope that he would regain full fitness before the tournament and then that was not the case, they could use a medical certificate to call up a replacement player.''

Some observers still caution against placing too much faith in an individual, but Beckham is not only one of England's three or four true world-class players, he is a talisman for a team who also lack another free-kick expert.

Indeed, Eriksson's faith in his ability on the pitch evidently extends to his recovery process from the injury which has made the public overnight experts on the second metatarsal bone in his left foot.

''I spoke to David on the phone and of course he was sad after a bad injury but he was also optimistic,'' revealed the Swede.

''His behaviour as captain has been absolutely perfect so of course we would miss him as he's extremely important for us in many ways, even though I think he will come with us.''

Eriksson, who was speaking at the launch of his new classical music CD compilation, must await further updates when the plaster cast comes off in about two or three weeks' time.

However, barring a setback, he still plans to name Beckham in his squad, while probably placing another player on stand-by in case the midfielder's recovery breaks down.

Eriksson is not unduly worried about Beckham's match fitness when he does return, given that he is a naturally fit individual.

And he is similarly unconcerned about the slim chance that the midfielder could attempt to return ahead of schedule for any Champions League final appearance by United as his club would not take any risks.

He simply insisted: ''Of course I am worried as the whole country seems to be worried but it is not giving me sleepless nights as I cannot do anything about it.

''The bone will heal or not heal. I'm just hoping, waiting and being positive. It's a very difficult decision but we don't need to make it yet. If David can't play at the World Cup, we will just have to play it without him. That should be a pity for him and for us, but we would still have to compete. I'm very optimistic though.''

* FIFA have confirmed that England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson would be able to replace David Beckham in his squad up until 24 hours before the start of the tournament.

The news is a major boost for Eriksson as it gives him an extra nine days in which to assess Beckham's fitness before making a final decision on his availability for the World Cup following the broken bone in his left foot.

The Swede had been expecting FIFA to rule that only 'new' injuries would enable teams to replace players after they had submitted their official squads on May 21.