WHAT a waste. And what a shame.

The well-manicured pitch at Old Trafford will be a lot less colouful than it used to be - minus the aesthetics, blond crop, tats, and most of all, a swift display of footwork from a set-piece that almost always guaranteed thunderous applause from the resulting goal.

While it seems like a sure-win game for the England team against Macedonia tomorrow, the victory - not entirely celebratory - will, for the fourth time, be without one metrosexual lending his magic with his pretty, moisturised feet.

Okay, I'm suffering from a David Beckham withdrawal.

And why not?

This is one guy you want to love. And love to hate.

Face it, he is one of the reasons why we watch and read about football.

The same reason why we bothered to lend our eardrums to the Spice Girls. Not that Posh can carry a tune, but we love her clothes. And envy her association with the most beautiful man on the pitch.

For all the fluff he embodies, the fashionable one told teamtalk.com that he was willing to give up everything (wife included, I hope) to win a trophy for his country in the last World Cup.

He was desperate to bring glory to his country.

Sigh...

My heart sank when he was dropped from the England team after their World Cup quarter-final exit on penalties to Portugal.

It was a sad day for me. And England, too.

Football fans in England mourned the loss, it appears.

In a recent survey conducted by LifeStyle Extra which polled 1,047 players of a new football management video game, about 71 per cent want to see the former skipper back in the team.

Even former team-mate Owen Hargreaves said that it felt strange without Beckham.

After all, the latter had been the captain and the focal point of the team, he said.

Truth is, the 25-year-old can't wait to be the next big thing. You and I know, without Beckham in the equation, it's much easier for a hungry footballer to shine. And Hargreaves isn't afraid to admit it.

Sure, change is good.

But not when it comes to politics.

England's new manager Steve McClaren said he wanted a new team - a dream team - without the Real Madrid midfielder. He added a dash of diplomatic theatrics to cushion the impact of his decision, saying that he has 'great respect for him, fantastic captain for England, a great player and still a great player - and I will never close the door'.

Come on, who is he trying to kid?

You don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure this one out.

Sure, critics say that the 31-year-old footballer should have gone long ago. They hinted that he wasn't interested in the game because of his rock 'n' roll lifestyle.

They also criticised him for being a poor tackler lacking in stamina.

Poor Becks was blamed and jeered for England's elimination in the 1998 World Cup - his petulant response against Diego Simeone of Argentina resulting in a red card for him and the team losing on penalties thereafter.

He was subsequently jeered for an entire season by opposition fans whenever he touched the ball in Manchester United's colours.

But he transcended all that to become England's captain, and the cheers returned when he led the team to a 5-1 victory over Germany in a World Cup 2002 Qualifier in Munich, and then securing a spot for England with his trademark free-kick against Greece.

And when things don't turn out the way it should be - like England's failure to make it beyond the quarter-finals in South Korea and Japan - Beckham took the heat again once again.

To his credit, he stood the test of time, along with the harsh criticism.

But today, Becks has found himself in a gutter. Bitten and discarded like garbage by the institution he once contributed to and believed in for a decade.

It hurts. Pride is everything for a man of his stature. But not when he declared his strong desire to play for the national team again.

So why deny the man his penalty kicks? That's my question.

In his gentlemanly press statement, he said: 'I can fully understand that a new manager should want to make his mark on the team and build towards the next World Cup.'

It's a polite way of saying: 'I can't understand why I can't play, you conceited fool!'

Beckham seems to be taking it well. So well you hardly hear a whisper in the British tabloids.

If critics and McClaren think they've got a dream team on their hands - sans Beckham, scandals and notorious Wags - just watch the upcoming circus that will put the English team in the spotlight again.

The wives and girlfriends of the England football squad are set to appear on FW Boutique (Footballers' Wives Boutique), a reality show where they will pit their fashion and shopping skills against one another.

The bimbo cast: Jermain Defoe's girlfriend Charlotte Meares, Wayne Rooney's gal Colleen McLoughlin, Steven Gerard's fiance Alex Curran and Theo Walcott's love Melanie Slade, according to reports.

Other Wags lined up for the series may include Joe Cole's partner Carly Zucker and Frank Lampard's other half Elen Rives, reported the Cambridge Evening News.

A reality shopping show - sounds like fun, doesn't it?

It's rock 'n' roll hyper-reality at its obscene best.

So why the double standards for the Beckhams?

Jealousy, obviously, especially when yours is a million-dollar face.

Fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana, of the label Dolce and Gabbana, said: 'David Beckham is one of the contemporary icons, a reference point - internationally acknowledged by millions of men and women.'

You can take the Armani off this man, but when you have talent, no-one can take it away from you.

Becks knows it, his fans know it, his team knows it.

And Steve McClaren, I'm quite certain, is well aware of the talents of this man.

So, if by some miracle you manage to read this, McClaren, I've three words for you:

Shame on you!