Beckham can be the man who wins England the World Cup, but not as a cone carrier for Capello

Fabio Capello, a manager unimpressed by celebrity. A man who refuses to pander to the egos of our superstar England players. A man of discipline and routine, who dislikes unnecessary distractions.

A boss who, er.... thinks it is a good idea to install world football's greatest celebrity bauble, paparazzi magnet, news-hound attracting, glamour boy David Beckham as the new novice coach to his World Cup squad.

Am I the only one thinking Capello is losing the sure-footed, solid touch that made him the perfect no-nonsense antidote to Steve McClaren?

First the Capello Index , then the late unsuccessful bids to talks forgotten England man Paul Scholes out of retirement.

Now Becks is asked to don his England training kit, and become a behind the scenes guru in South Africa.

A link man between Capello and the players, to compensate for the Italian's less than perfect communication skills. A 115-cap confidante to whisper gems of wisdom to players who may be feeling the pressure, or need a positional tweak to out do the opposition.

Beckham has been thinking about Capello's offer of a coaching role for several weeks, and is almost certain to accept and limp onto the plane on June 2. It seems even the Achilles he ruptured playing for Milan will not be enough to deny him a starring role in the greatest show on earth.

So what will be the point of coach Becks? Surely the star-dust around the England squad should be created by the men charged with winning England the World Cup ON the pitch.

Maybe this is actually Capello is being clever. Has he calculated that Beckham's presence will create a welcome distraction (and it will be a distraction no matter how low key the ex-skipper tries to be), removing some of the spotlight from his players in an intense situation?

Maybe Beckham can play an effective role behind the scenes, imparting advice and relieving the big game tension. If anyone has been under the worldwide spotlight, he has.

Maybe Beckham can work effectively on the training pitch with younger stars including James Milner and Theo Walcott, although why test that theory at a World Cup?

But how will former team mates John Terry and Frank Lampard feel about Beckham knocking on the door of their hotel in Rustenburg next month to chat through what Capello thinks of them? Or Rio Ferdinand, David James and Steven Gerrard? Do they not have their own experience to draw on and their own support systems?

And why have an old dressing room pal/rival delivering the messages?

Part of the attraction of Capello and his coaching staff is the distance they have with the elite English players. It keeps them guessing, keeps them on their toes, anxious to impress.

By closing that gap, with an old team-mate of the players, those clear lines of command become blurred and Capello's unique edge lost.

But there is one major over-riding reason why David Beckham should not be tied down to a headline grabbing coaching role at England HQ.

Yes, Beckham is needed to win a World Cup. But not the 2010 World Cup. Beckham is needed to win the 2018 or 2022 World Cup for England.

His celebrity can be used by the 2018 bid team far for more effectively that Capello can use him as a cheerleader inside his camp.

It is the 2018 bid team who need star quality to catch the imagination of the world, not Capello's cone carriers.

Becks would be best used touring the townships, reaching out to South African kids, charming the 24 voters on the Fifa Executive Committee into awarding England the "great prize" next December.

In South Africa, Beckham has the opportunity to set the agenda for England's bid on a world stage, and he's the perfect ambassador. But he won't be as effective being released from Capello's command, as is expected, for just a couple of days of handshaking.

Beckham can be the man who wins England the World Cup. But not as a side-show coach under Capello.

As a genuinely loved and respected figure away from the squad, he'd leave a greater legacy by demonstrating to the world why England deserve to be hosts (and they do) in eight years time.