SEOUL, May 28: French superstar Zinedine Zidane limped out of the World Cup’s revolving door on Tuesday as England’s inspirational midfielder David Beckham strutted back in having made a miraculous recovery from injury.

As France started to put the world’s most expensive player through a medical machine in a desperate bid to get him fit for their second game, Beckham came out of one confirmed as available for England’s first match against Sweden on Sunday.

The Real Madrid and Manchester United playmakers are among a host of big names paying the price for a long hard season before the World Cup campaign starts on Friday. Italian striker Filippo Inzaghi will also miss his country’s first game against Ecuador. Germany has also been decimated by injuries.

Zidane, who injured a thigh muscle in France’s 3-2 win over South Korea on Sunday, could miss all of France’s first round matches in their defence of the World Cup, the French team doctor Jean-Marcel Ferret said.

Zidane said he is hopeful of getting back for the second Group A match against Uruguay on June 6. Doctors indicated however that there is no guarantee that Zidane will even be able to play the third group match against Denmark on June 11.

“What is sure is that he will not play in the match against Senegal,” Ferret told a press conference. “Afterwards, anything is possible between this match and, say, the second round.”

His injury has cast a dark cloud over the French camp.

“The French group is obviously stronger with him. Zidane is an exceptional player and when he is in the team he always gives it life,” coach Roger Lemerre said Monday.

Beckham is living proof that top players can make a spectacular return with the help of latest medical methods.

The England captain has not played for nearly seven weeks since breaking a bone in his left foot during Manchester United’s Champions League quarter final with Deportivo La Coruna. At first it was thought he would miss all the World Cup.

But England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson delivered the news that all of England had been desperate to hear as Ferret gave the bad news about Zidane.

“He had a session this morning and he did everything,” Eriksson said. “He took some corners and did a lot of shooting, a lot of running.

“So hopefully this afternoon or, for sure, tomorrow morning he will do everything with us. And of course, hopefully there will not be a reaction after that. We think he will be ready for Sweden, yes.”

Eriksson said he was confident that Beckham would be fit to start the match, despite the long layoff.

Having to do without Beckham’s passing, crossing and match-winning free-kicks would have been a major blow to England’s chances of getting through Group D, which includes tournament favourites Argentina, Nigeria and Sweden.

“We have a lot of options but we do not have another Beckham,” Eriksson acknowledged.

England’s midfield has been devastated by injury in the runup to the World Cup with Liverpool’s Steven Gerrard already ruled out.

England still have doubts about Newcastle United midfielder Kieron Dyer. Eriksson said Dyer was making good progress in shaking off a knee injury but he would decide by Friday whether to send Dyer home and call up a replacement, which he can do until 24 hours before the first match under FIFA rules.

Nearly every one of the World Cup favourites has injury doubts or has left key players behind.

German midfielder Sebastian Deisler, his World Cup dreams shattered by a right knee injury, has undergone surgery in the United States having been injured in a friendly against Austria this month. Jorg Heinrich also pulled out last week joining key players Mehmet Scholl and defensive lynchpin Jens Nowotny on the sidelines.

Argentina have doubts about veteran striker Claudio Cannigia going into their first match against Nigeria.—AFP