Left is not right for Beckham

London: David Beckham has one leg longer than the other, the England captain told the News of the World on Sunday. Beckham said he was unaware of the problem until he underwent a medical before his transfer from Manchester United to Real Madrid last July. “One of my legs is shorter than the other,” he told the newspaper. “I think it’s a common problem but the difference in mine is a bit more unusual.

“I didn’t know about it until I signed for Real and it showed up in the medical. The doctors told me: ‘By the way, you’ve got a little bit of a problem with your back.’ Thankfully, it’s not a big problem,” said Beckham.

The midfielder has been troubled by a string of injuries since joining Real. He has missed the last three games because of a problem with his right ankle but is back in the squad for the away league match against Real Betis. “My left leg is shorter than my right,” he said.“I have tried to wear insoles to help but I can’t wear anything in my (soccer) boots. “That’s the problem with my present injury,” he said.“I don’t like wearing anything padded because I only want to feel the boot against my foot and nothing else, especially when I’m taking free kicks.”

Jaguar unveils new car

Barcelona: Jaguar launched on Sunday the 2004 Formula One car that they hope will bring in points right from the start of the season.

“This year our aim is to compete with the Toyotas, the Saubers and the BARs,” said team boss Tony Purnell as the car was unveiled at Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya before an afternoon of testing at the track.

“We’re not ready to go for the front guys, but I’d like to think we might put a little bit of pressure on the front guys as the season progresses.”

Jaguar finished seventh overall in 2003 but looked more together as a team and Australian Mark Webber particularly impressed with strong qualifying performances.

This year he is teamed up with 20-year-old Austrian Christian Klien, who until two weeks ago had never been further from his home than Switzerland.

Martin Johnson calls it quits

Leicester: England’s World Cup-winning captain Martin Johnson announced his retirement from international rugby union on Saturday.

The 33-year-old, who will continue playing for his club Leicester, confirmed his England career was over in a statement issued after Leicester’s 49-7 European Cup win at home to Ulster.

“After talking to my family and friends and after a lot of thought, I have decided to retire from international rugby with immediate effect,” said Johnson, who scored his side’s final try. “It has not been an easy decision and it has been a privilege to play for England with some great players and a great coaching staff. But you know when it’s time to go.

Johnson added at a post-match news conference: “I’ve been very fortunate in my career and had some breaks early on. We’ve had a great team and we’ve gone on to do some great things.”

Oli Kahn confident

Berlin: Bayern Munich captain Oliver Kahn is confident the German champions will retain their Bundesliga title, even though four teams are still in the hunt for German championship glory. “Bremen, Leverkusen, Stuttgart and us — all of us have what it takes to become champions but, in the end, it’ll be us,” he said in the Bild am Sonntag.

“We’ve always been able to step up in the second round. I think the others have played close to their limits, but we’ve got more left in us.”

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