England captain David Beckham has been criticised here before - and I must state straight away that I am not Beckham-bashing for the sake of it by questioning his role again.
 | ENGLAND v AZERBAIJAN World Cup qualifying Group 6 | 30 March 1945 BST | St James' Park | Live BBC1, BBC Radio Five Live and this website |
But after his performance in the 4-0 win against Northern Ireland, I have to say I expect more from an England captain when it comes to the tactical shape of the team.
Beckham was meant to be playing on the right of a four-man midfield, and yet he kept drifting inside and clogging up spaces for England's midfield and attackers, particularly in the first half.
It was left to Gary Neville to provide the shape down the right, and that simply shouldn't be the case.
Beckham was obviously told by England's management team to stick to his role in the side and stay in the wide position as the game went on.
And it paid dividends when Northern Ireland's Tony Capaldi was forced inside and gave the ball away to Joe Cole for England's opener.
Of course people will say I'm nit-picking after such a comprehensive win, but these points must be made.
I heard people on the phone-in criticising my BBC colleague Alan Green for making similar observations, but he was absolutely right.
England may have escaped punishment for such indiscipline against Northern Ireland, but against the better opposition they will face if - or when - they reach next year's World Cup, they may pay a heavy price.
All it takes is for someone not to be disciplined, or fail to stick to the system, and you could be in big trouble.
It may be a small point against Northern Ireland, but against bigger teams it could become a bigger issue.
Maybe it is because Beckham plays inside for Real Madrid. Maybe it is because Beckham always wants the ball - and whatever else we may say about him, he never hides from the ball.
But he just can't afford to keep drifting inside. England already have Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard in there, so he is over-manning that area.
And he can't drift in to play the role of someone dropping off the striker and running at defences, because Wayne Rooney does that brilliantly, as he showed at Old Trafford.
I actually think Joe Cole showed more discipline on the left of midfield than Beckham did on the right.
Beckham simply must hold the shape, give the team width and get on the ball to demonstrate his real strength, which is his range of passing.
He won't ever get a place in the centre of England's midfield because he hasn't got the legs, or the same pace and drive as Lampard and Gerrard, but he is a very accurate passer.
|  I expect more discipline from David Beckham as England's captain when it comes to the shape of the team |
Eriksson may be a big admirer of Beckham, but he could never leave out Lampard and Gerrard to accommodate him in the centre of midfield.
The press and public would slaughter him and rightly so.
So Beckham has challenges to meet, and that discipline will be necessary, not just against stronger teams, but against Azerbaijan on Wednesday, when England will need to keep their shape in a bid to rack up goals.
What I will say is that Beckham should be in the team to meet those challenges. I do not agree with those who say his place is now under threat.
At the moment there is nobody to replace him. Shaun Wright-Phillips has his supporters, but he has not shown enough yet, and he blotted his copybook by missing chances in the friendly against Holland.
So while Beckham has to accept the criticisms now being more widely made of him, I feel he should still be in the team.
I was very impressed by the hunger and desire shown by England against Northern Ireland.
| Joe Cole showed more discipline on the left than Beckham did on the right |
Joe Cole and Wayne Rooney were truly outstanding and England could have won by more.
One debate for the future has been what Sven-Goran Eriksson will do in central defence once Sol Campbell is fit, given the form of John Terry.
I would not alter the formation to play three centre-halves. I would stick with two, and for me Chelsea captain Terry is the number one centre-half at the moment, even ahead of Rio Ferdinand.
He has been a delight for the last two seasons, and is full of power and aggression at both ends of the pitch.
People have talked about him being an old-fashioned England central defender in the mould of some of the old-timers such as, say, Terry Butcher.
Nice flattery - but he is much better than I was and I would play him alongside Ferdinand now.
Some suggested he had a poor Euro 2004, but I couldn't believe that - I thought he was outstanding.
As for Wednesday, Poland have set the target by scoring eight goals against Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan will be shell-shocked and terrified. They will face England with great trepidation.
So the challenge to England's players is this - you've got 90 minutes to score at least the eight goals Poland score against Azerbaijan.
It's a tough target, but why not go for it?
MMIX
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