You’ve said you might come back to the Premier League. Would you go back to Manchester United if you had the chance?
I’d love to go back to United because they are the team I support. They’re the best club that I’ve played for, but I’m 34 years old now – I’m getting a little bit older. I was very successful there and made a lot of friends and for me they are the best fans in the world. As a supporter, I’m really happy they’re having a lot of success. Manchester United is always a team that any professional would want to play for.

You’ve fallen out with your LA Galaxy teammate Landon Donovan, but you must have some pretty good pals in football…
I used to be closest to Gary Neville – I was best friends with him and he was best man at my wedding, but I’m close with a lot of the players in the England squad. That’s what’s great about that squad at the moment: you become friends with every one of the players. You have to be friends with the people that you want to be successful with.
Fabio Capello dropped you at Real Madrid, but he’s brought you back into the England fold.

Is he a good manager for you?
He’s one of the best England managers we’ve had. I think that’s been proven by the results we’ve been getting. You can see it in the way the team are playing with each other and the attitude of the players now. I think that’s the biggest thing. The players go out onto the field with a lot of confidence. That’s come from the manager and the coaching staff.

Who was your hero when you were younger?
Bryan Robson. He was one of the best midfielders in the world and wore the No7 for both Manchester United and England. When I was young, I used to watch videos of him and look at everything that he did on a football pitch. I wanted to be like him and do everything that he’s done in his career, so I’m lucky that because I worked hard, I was able to wear the No7 shirt and captain both Manchester United and England.

How good were you as a kid? Did you expect to play for England?
You always hope to play for your country as a kid, and I’ve been lucky enough to do it 110 times. I’m very honoured by that, but I never expected it. Sometimes when you expect things, they don’t happen.

Do you pay a lot of attention to stats? For example, do you know how many goals you’ve scored for England?
Funnily enough, I don’t. I think I’ve maybe scored 17. I think that’s about right, so far… [He’s right]

Any idea how many free kicks you’ve taken for England?
Quite a few! I’ve been lucky enough over the years to score some goals from free kicks for England. More importantly, I’ve had some assists from free kicks as well, as that’s my job on the field most of the time.

Have you always been able to score from free kicks?
It comes from practise. My dad always used to say if you practise something enough, when it comes to a game, there’s more chance of scoring. I was seven or eight when I started playing for a Sunday league team, and even then I used to practise free kicks. I’m 34 now and I still do. Practise is the best way!

What has been your favourite game you’ve played in?
Wow! I’d have to say the Greece game at Old Trafford [in 2001]. Firstly, because it was at Old Trafford and I’m a Manchester United fan. But also, that game was so important. There was so much pressure on England to qualify for Japan and South Korea, so to reach the World Cup finals with a goal that I scored was extra special. Then of course, Argentina in the 2002 World Cup, when I scored a penalty and we won 1-0. But that was special for other reasons as well…

And finally, have you ever scored a hat-trick?
My son asked me that the other day, whether I’ve ever scored three goals in a game. Unfortunately, I haven’t. I’ve scored two and been close to scoring three, but goalscoring isn’t my speciality – I’m more of a player that creates goals. But I’m still playing, so you never know!

David Beckham was speaking at an event hosted by England sponsor Nationwide. Visit www.nationwidefootball.co.uk/england