Beckham out of England qualifiers

The 32-year-old is expected to be out for six weeks, meaning he will not return until mid-October.

England name their squad on Friday for matches against Israel at Wembley on 8 September and Russia four days later.

Beckham, who only recently recovered from an ankle injury, hurt his knee in LA Galaxy's Superliga final defeat to Pachuca on Wednesday.

The Galaxy lost the match to the Mexicans 4-3 on penalties.

After a scan on Thursday, the team said in a statement that Beckham had suffered a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

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It means Beckham faces a race to be fit in time for the culmination of the Galaxy's season.

Their last game of the regular season is on 21 October.

The Galaxy's website said: "Beckham was diagnosed with a sprained right knee and is scheduled to undergo further tests to determine the extent of the injury today but said after the match that he felt discomfort."

It added: "He now might miss some significant time for the Galaxy and England."

Beckham joins Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney on the sidelines while Steven Gerrard is a doubt for the crucial Euro 2008 qualifiers.

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