Beckham Gone for Good

It doesn't matter what the contract says. David Beckham is staying with AC Milan, case closed. He is obviously happy there. He is playing well, and playing on a team loaded with international soccer superstars. He knows he does not have much time left to play at such a high level, so Beckham coming back to the woeful LA Galaxy for even 6 months just to send pinpoint crosses in to forwards who have no idea how to finish them, or, perhaps, to get hurt, is out of the question.

Some say MLS should hold out for a $15-20 transfer fee. Ain't gonna happen. MLS will be told they are getting $8-10 million and they better be happy with that or else they quite possibly will get nothing.

But it is not likely to come down to that. Bruce Arena can see the handwriting on the wall. Il Bruce knows he needs to fix his porous backline, and he needs bodies and the money to pay them to do that.

Beckham cannot afford to waste any more time with the dreadful Galaxy or, I hate to say, the mediocre level of play in MLS. And the Galaxy/MLS cannot afford to lose the chance to re-sign Beckham later when he is done in Europe for good.

So Beckham goes, MLS gets some kind of face-saving transfer fee, and hopefully the Galaxy will at least become competitive.