<span style="FONT-SIZE: 18pt; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Beckham's goal lifts England over Ecuador</span><br/><span style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">(AP)<br/>Updated: 2006-06-26 07:39</span> <p></p><span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><!--Element not supported - Type: 8 Name: #comment--><p>STUTTGART, Germany - David Beckham was feeling nauseous. England's offense was just as sickly, with nothing to show for an hour of aimless passing against Ecuador in the 90-degree heat. (<a href="http://www.chinadaily.net/sports/sports_06fifa_page.html" target="_blank">More pictures, gossips and features</a> ) </p><p><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="5" align="center" bgcolor="#000000" border="0"><tbody><tr><td valign="middle" align="left" bgcolor="#ffffff"><img alt="" hspace="0" src="http://www.chinadaily.net/sports/2006-06/26/xin_070603260745318130942.wcup_world_cup_soccer_england_ecuador_lon807" align="baseline" border="1"/><br/><font face="Arial" size="2">England's David Beckham celebrates with Ashley Cole after scoring the opening goal during the Round of 16 World Cup soccer match between England and Ecuador at the World Cup Gottlieb-Daimler stadium in Stuttgart, Germany, Sunday, June 25, 2006.[AP]</font> </td></tr></tbody></table></p><p>Then Beckham's right foot lived up to its fame, squeezing England into the World Cup quarterfinals. </p><p>Beckham curled a trademark 25-yard free kick just inside the post in the 60th minute Sunday, his first goal for England in nearly 15 months &iexcl;&ordf; and the lone highlight in an otherwise ugly 1-0 victory over Ecuador. </p><p>A few minutes later, he vomited on the field because of dehydration, and left the match in the 87th minute. </p><p>"The last two days I've been struggling, even in training," Beckham said. </p><p>Then he recounted what teammate Wayne Rooney had told him to give him a lift: "Wazza said to me before the game, `You've been terrible the last two days, so you're going to get one tonight.'" </p><p>Seeking its first World Cup title since 1966, England next plays Saturday against Portugal, which beat the Netherlands 1-0, but will have two starters &iexcl;&ordf; Deco and Costinha &iexcl;&ordf; suspended for the match. </p><p>While Beckham is soccer's best-known player, he is far from the best, a 31-year-old midfielder criticized for his lack of defense and inability to score from the run of play. </p><p>But his status as a cultural icon has grown in his decade with England, especially since his marriage to pop star Victoria Adams, formerly known as Posh Spice. He has opened a soccer academy in California, and he is considering ending his career in the U.S. with Major League Soccer. </p><p>His goal ended a 13-match scoreless streak dating to a World Cup qualifier against Azerbaijan on March 30, 2005. </p><p>For England, the wait was worth it. </p><p>"Obviously, Becks is crucial," teammate Owen Hargreaves said. </p><p>Before Beckham's goal, the English surrendered chances to Ecuador and missed a few of their own. The game finally turned when Edwin Tenorio fouled Frank Lampard outside the penalty area, giving England the free kick. </p><p>The English captain, whose darting shots inspired the 2003 movie titled "Bend it Like Beckham," snatched the ball from the referee, lined up his planned trajectory and sent the ball spinning and twisting toward the goal. </p><p>It hooked ever so carefully over a defensive wall of four Ecuadoreans in bright yellow shirts and dipped toward the corner. Goalkeeper Cristian Mora dived to his right and caught a piece of it with his fingertips, but couldn't stop it from grazing the post and squirting into the net. </p><p>"He proved his worth today," teammate Rio Ferdinand said. </p><p>Becoming the first Englishman to score in three World Cups, Beckham ran wildly toward the center of the field, hooking an arm around Ashley Cole. Adams, the focus of television cameras, jumped up in the stands. </p><p>"I have stopped saying anything to the critics about David Beckham," England coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said. "He's maybe the best player on set pieces in the world, and he's still criticized." </p><p>Despite the heat and muggy weather, Beckham oddly switched from short sleeves to long at halftime, and left late in the game despite feeling better. </p><p>"We've got to overcome this because there will be other days like this," Beckham said. "We make things hard for ourselves. We don't keep the ball as well as we can do." </p><p>Beckham's goal was just his 17th in 93 international appearances, but one sure to be included on the tournament's highlights. </p><p>Ecuador coach Luis Fernando Suarez, whose team had advanced beyond the opening round for the first time, said he was proud of his team's accomplishment in the face of an overwhelming favorite. </p><p>"An extremely complicated match," Suarez said. "It was decided as I expected, either on a dead ball or a genius move. All the credit is for the person who kicked it. My men did not fail." <br/>"I didn't know he was feeling bad before the game," Eriksson said. "He didn't tell me, that's for sure." </p><p>After the final whistle, Beckham walked out to wave at the England supporters who sang "Football's Coming Home," the theme of the 1996 Euro Championship it hoped to win but never did. </p><p>"We will take this, although I don't think it was good football at times," Beckham said. "Tonight we can go home very happy." </p><p>The crowd of 52,000 in Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion was about 90 percent English supporters in white and red, many waving the Cross of St. George flag. The familiar tune of "Rule, Britannia!" was repeatedly sung. </p><p>There was no word of immediate fan violence in Stuttgart after the match, though police had to deal with trouble in the city center a day earlier &iexcl;&ordf; as often is the case when England plays. </p><p>About 500 were arrested Saturday in Stuttgart, and all but few were English. Approximately 1,800 officers patrolled the streets, including British law enforcement, to help police an estimated 50,000 English fans. </p><p>Ecuador's Carlos Tenorio had the first good scoring chance in the 12th minute when defender John Terry's attempt at a clearing header popped up in the air behind him. Tenorio, one-on-one against goalkeeper Paul Robinson, settled the ball, and his right-footed shot deflected off a sliding Cole and off the crossbar. </p><p>"I thought the ball was going in," Tenorio said. "If the play ends up being a goal, the course of the match would have been very different. </p><p>England didn't mind winning ugly. </p><p>"Results win tournaments. Performances don't," Ferdinand said. "If we get a good performance, fantastic, that's what we aim for. But if it doesn't happen and we get the result, who's going to cry about that?" </p></span>