By BRIAN LEWIS
Confirmation is coming from both sides of the Atlantic _ the L.A. Galaxy and AC Milan _ that David Beckham is closing in on a loan deal to play in Serie A for a few months, starting in January.
“The deal is not done yet. We have to define everything with his lawyers and the Galaxy,” Milan VP Adriano Galliani told Conto TV before today’s UEFA Cup tilt vs. Heerenveen. “I’m confident but it is absolutely not closed.”
But the Galaxy’s playoff hopes are closed, so it makes sense. Goldenballs wants to stay match-fit in hopes of getting England call-ups from Fabio Capello. It gets Beckham practice time with world-class players, increases the chances of having an MLS player suiting up for a top European club in World Cup qualifiers, and increases the league’s profile.
Obviously, it doesn’t help the Galaxy in the early stages of next season. and obviously the least happy person about this whole deal is L.A. coach Bruce Arena, who told the L.A. Times “I would think (given) the position the Galaxy is in, and we’re rebuilding our team and trying to have a successful year, it would seem very odd to me if we were loaning out our top players at the start of the season. It would seem pretty odd to me to operate that way.”
What do you think of this development?