LONDON, May 31 (Xinhua) -- England soccer legend
David Beckham has been called up to England squad for the first time under coach
Steve McClaren, who dumped him after last year's World Cup.
Striker Michael Owen, England's front-line thriller
who recovered from a lengthy knee injury, also came back.
"There's different reasons why we have been away, but
we have all got the same reasons for being back," Owen said Thursday.
England captain John Terry said Beckham's return
meant the team was "back to normal."
Terry became skipper after Beckham relinquished the
captaincy after England lost to Portugal in a penalty shootout in the
quarterfinals of the World Cup on July 1.
"It's great to have him back," Terry said. "He's a
familiar face and we know his quality. He's brought that into training and we
are looking forward to him playing."
England will play a friendly against Brazil at the
new Wembley Stadium on Friday and a must-win qualifier at Estonia next
week.
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