FINLAND - David Beckham and his wife Victoria left Finland yesterday on a private jet, two days after the former England captain had surgery for a torn Achilles tendon.

FINLAND - David Beckham and his wife Victoria left Finland yesterday on a private jet, two days after the former England captain had surgery for a torn Achilles tendon.

The plane carrying the couple took off in a light snow shower shortly after they arrived from the clinic where Beckham had surgery on his left foot. The injury will keep him sidelined for about six months, meaning he will miss the World Cup in South Africa.

The couple made no comments as they left, and it wasn't immediately clear where they were heading. Beckham's doctor, who had earlier said they would likely travel to London and later to the US, said yesterday he "had no idea where they are flying to".

"I did say that perhaps it would not be wise to fly straight off to Los Angeles ... that he should stop somewhere first," said Sakari Orava, the orthopedic surgeon who performed the operation.

Orava said Beckham was "well and in a good mood". - - Sapa-AP