02 July 2006
VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: David Beckham announcement
Watch the emotional moment as David Beckham stands down as England captain after six years with the armband.

Just 24 hours after David Beckham announced he was standing down as England captain, we took time to look back at his five best moments as skipper.

Germany 1-5 England
World Cup Qualifier
Olympic Stadium, Munich
01 September 2001
Match Report

A day all England fans will recall with a smile.

England's hopes of automatic qualification for the 2002 World Cup Finals were fading fast after a poor start to the campaign, and it got worse when The Three Lions fell one down to Carsten Jancker's goal after six minutes.

But Beckham's England, inspired by Michael Owen's hat-trick, turned in a special display to rout the Germans on their home soil. Steven Gerrard and Emile Heskey scored the other goals.

It was Beckham's eighth game in charge.

England 2-2 Greece
World Cup Qualifier
Old Trafford, Manchester
06 October 2001
Match Report

Trailing 2-1 to Greece, captain Beckham chose a wonderful moment to lead from the front.

Impeccable during the game in a supremely energetic performance, Beckham stood 25 yards from the Greece goal in the final minute knowing only a successful free-kick would see England through to the 2002 World Cup Finals. And how he delivered.

With 66,000 holding their breath, and millions watching on TV at home, Beckham curled in a sublime effort which sealed The Three Lions' passage to the Far East and condemned Germany to a play-off.

Arguably his greatest moment in an England shirt.

England 1-0 Argentina
World Cup Finals
Sapporo Dome, Sapporo
07 June 2002
Match Report

Four years after being sent off against the same opposition in St Etienne for a silly kick on Diego Simeone, the England captain exorcised his demons in a moment of pure theatre.

With the game evenly poised after 44 minutes, England were awarded a penalty following a foul on Michael Owen.

Beckham grabbed the ball and placed it on the spot. Simeone tried to shake hands in a moment of gamesmanship, but England's captain, hyperventilating, ignored the gesture and blasted the ball into the net.

England v Wales
World Cup Qualifier
Old Trafford, Manchester
06 October 2004
Match Report

Beckham gave the Old Trafford faithful a reminder of his wonderful talent with his first goal for England at the ground since leaving Manchester United.

With England leading through Frank Lampard's fourth minute strike, The Three Lions had to sit tight until the 76th minute for their second goal...but it was well worth the wait.

Collecting a short square pass from Nicky Butt as he loitered on the left hand side of the penalty box, Beckham switched the ball onto his right foot before sending a curling shot past the despairing Paul Jones.

England 1-0 Ecuador
World Cup Finals
Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion, Stuttgart
25 June 2006
Match Report

With England struggling both against the sweltering heat and their South American opponents, it's that man Beckham again who sees England home, making history in the process.

After Frank Lampard was fouled 25 from yards from goal, Beckham stood over the ball with only one thing in his mind. The result was glorious, the ball curling over the wall and in off the post to the delight of the England fans.

Cue the mass celebration, soon followed by a bout of sickness as our captain marvel throws up on the field before being substituted.

Having scored in the previous two World Cups (a free-kick against Colombia in 1998 and a penalty against Argentina four years later), Beckham became the first English player to score in three World Cups.