DAVID Beckham and Paul Scholes could be struggling to be fit for Manchester United's Old Trafford showdown with Wanderers at Old Trafford next Wednesday.

They have both been ruled out of England's friendly against Portugal at Villa Park on Saturday after aggravating injuries in United's 1-0 home victory over Middlesbrough last night and Sir Alex Ferguson fears they could also miss next week's Premiership game.

With skipper Roy Keane already sidelined after undergoing surgery to clear a hip problem, the United boss could be forced into a major midfield re-think. But his concern has been met with some scepticism by observers who suspect this is a case of Ferguson showing no consideration for England affairs.

He had already advised Eriksson not to name Scholes in his squad for the Portugal game because he had an ankle problem but surprisingly played him last night. Now he says the flame-haired midfielder also has a knee problem. After advising the England coach of Beckham's problem, Ferguson said the England skipper was already struggling going into last night's encounter.

The Football Association today confirmed Beckham's withdrawal. Eriksson must now decide whether to keep Michael Owen as his stand-in skipper or turn to Rio Ferdinand. But he does not intend to call up a replacement unless there are further injury problems in his relatively small squad.