Beckham to PSG...really? Where will he play?

After playing coy with the media, the Spice Boy, David Beckham ends up in the city of lights - with PSG. Uh okay. When this transfer was discussed months ago I was very skeptical. On the sporting front I just do not see why PSG would bring in a way-past-his-prime former England captain. On the branding and marketing side it makes "sense."

But where do you play him? He could not longer "tear up" the MLS so now what will he be able to do back in Europe? The PSG midfield is already full of quality players - Menez, Pastore, Matuidi, Motta and the youngsters - Veratti and Lucas. You cannot expect Beckham to play the creative midfield role, he does not have the legs anymore. He cannot play wide, those corridors are already occupied but the likes of Menez et al. Deep lying play maker? Seems like Ancelotti rather have players with engines there - Motta and Matuidi come to mind. Could Golden Balls be used as a late game sub off the bench? Sure. I can see him being played 15-20 minutes if PSG is chasing a goal. Use his dead ball skills and some of his creativity. But even in that capacity I feel PSG has plenty of options to fulfill that role...who also have younger legs.

On the sporting plan this does not seem to jive. If it is about creating buzz, selling kits, filling stadiums and turning PSG into a greater "name"...mission accomplished.

PSG - can't buy me love

Beckham, Pato and now Tevez? I guess the petro-euros in Paris are not as valuable as once believed! After Beckham said no thanks to PSG and re-upped with the Galaxy and then we say PSG do a dance with AC Milan only to see Pato say no to the French capital, now we are watching at the Apache might follow suit. What is going on! A few weeks ago I was waiting to see a whole host of big names being unveiled at the Parc. Well we did sign 30 year old Barcelona bench warmer - Maxwell. PSG is linked with another aging defender in Maicon.

Hmm should I go to Paris....

So what is really going on in Paris. Ancelotti has made it clear he wants a big name striker/offensive option brought in before the end of the month (did I mention that Kaka has also been on this merry go round) but it looks as if that might be a pipe dream. I understand what Ancelotti is looking to do, but once again I ask - what is the plan?

Beckham, thankfully he stayed in LA, but what would have been his role? Wide player? Deep lying midfielder? Late game substitute? That smells like a PR move and not a football move.

Pato? Big name. How would he be used? Top of the Ancelotti Christmas Tree? (4-3-2-1) Or would he some how be a tandem striker with Gameiro and/or Hourau. What about Tevez? What formation would he slot into? What about Kaka. Where would he slot and doesn't he make Pastore redundant? Or would Kaka be more of a 9.5, but then who plays the role of the #9? What about Nene and Menez? If you have Pastore, Kaka, Nene and Menez with Sissoko, Matuidi and Chantome you find a very crowed midfield.

PSG is sitting in a good position, they are our of the Europa League so can focus on domestic football. They sit 3 points clear of second, even after playing through a poor spell. Do they need a big name striker? Not sure. Hourau is coming back from injury and should assist. They might need some more depth in the midfield, especially if Ancelotti sticks with his preferred 4-3-2-1 formation. I also believe that we will see more success over the summer transfer window, if and when PSG are qualified for the Champions League.

12 more days...how many more players can avoid PSG during the transfer window?

Does PSG have a plan, or are they just collecting toys?

The Manchester City of the Seine is at it again, with the winter transfer window a few weeks away, PSG is rumored to be involved in a host of big transfers;

• Beckham from LA Galaxy seems like a done deal.
• The Apache - Tevez - might be heading to Paris rather than Milan
• Kalou could take the Eurostar from London to Paris
• Kolo Toure might actually go from Manchester City in Manchester to Manchester City on the Seine.
• Now there are even "rumors" of Villa and Higuain being looked at...

 Looks interesting on paper, for fantasy soccer and for L'Equipe, but does any of this really make sense on the field? As the article from Sports24 mentions, how would these players fit into the general direction of the club? Where would they play and who would be the odd man out?

I can't run that way anymore...

Beckham: Where would you slot him? Out on the right? Push Menez to the bench? Golden Balls can no longer play in the middle of the park, I know he did that with the Galaxy, but all due respect to the MLS, that is not the same as playing the role in Europe. But that would push out other players from the mix, and again not sure Becks can last 90 minutes in that role.

Tevez: Gameiro does not seem to be the issue, he is on pace to lead Ligue 1 again in goals. Granted having Tevez would be an upgrade, but does PSG really have a dire need there? They have Hourau coming back as well. And they currently choose to play with a lone striker, with Tevez, Hourau and Gameiro there will not be much time to go around.

Kalou: Unlike Tevez, could play other front line roles - lone striker, deep lying striker, winger etc so would give PSG more options, might be a good signing.

Toure: Getting a bit long in the tooth, but clearly PSG have struggled with their central defensive pairing, could the former Gunner be the answer to partner with Sakho? Not sure, but after signing a number of central defenders this summer why dip into that pool again?

Villa and Higuain...uh not going to happen so no need to discuss.

I will have this many assists if I can play deeper

Once again I feel we are seeing what we saw with Chelsea and Manchester City when they found new wealth - sign a bunch of names without any regard to your on field direction! Granted it is easier to figure things out when you have a collection of talent and are not concerned about cutting bait and absorbing costs, but with some thought you can avoid that step in the process.

This transfer market should be interesting for PSG. For me they need to add to the defensive back line, I would like to see them go after some better outside backs - someone like Tremoulinas from Bordeaux would be nice! The real issue that has to be worked out is what formation makes the most sense...to me Pastore is too high on the pitch, maybe look to a 4-4-2 offensive formation where Pastore and Matuidi would be the central midfielders, Matuidi responsible for the dirty work and Pastore would be able to pick up the ball deeper and carry the play. That would allow Nene and Menez to play wide and have two strikers, you could even stay with one striker and play a formation closer to a 4-3-3 or 4-3-2-1.

I am sure that PSG and their owners will feel the need to add some new toys to their stable, but not sure that is what is needed. Oh well, having money to buy players is not necessarily a bad problem to have...

Titi Henry coming soon to a MLS pitch near you!

So the worst kept secret - Titi Henry is coming to the MLS signing with Red Bull New York. Of course this has lost some of its luster after the "Hand of Gaul" coupled with France's debacle at the World Cup makes the Henry glow much less bright. Which I think might not be a bad thing for the former Barcelona man. Why? Unlike when Golden Balls arrived in LA from Real Madrid, coupled with massive promotional fanfare and hoopla, this signing has been rather quiet. Granted, Henry does not have the same marketing halo that Beckham brings along. However on the international scene, Henry has had a similar level of success, arguably more at some points. He is the leading goal scorer for his nation with 51 goals, has won the Champions League, FA Cup, EPL, World Cup and European Cup. For a few seasons he was the most dangerous striker in England maybe all of the soccer world.



So now Titi will take his talents and goal scoring ability to the MLS without the fanfare one might have otherwise expected. Which is a good thing, he will not have the inflated expectations that surrounded Beckham. Nor will Henry have to live up to untenable expectations. Granted it will not be a picnic...I am sure he will bear some of the Irish fans' ire during his matches as well as being a target for MLS players trying to make names for themselves - similar to what Becks goes through! Henry will most likely not walk on the pitch and score 25 goals nor make mazy runs nor hit volleys from 30 yards, but he still has enough in his legs to form a formidable partnership with Angel spearheading the Red Bull attack.

It will be interesting to see how Henry does in the MLS. I think he will be a productive player, will have moments of brilliance and he will be a good spokesperson for the game. Hopefully he will have a chance to rebuild his image, that took a hit in South Africa.

Golden Balls out of World Cup

After a non contact injury, where David Beckham tore his Achilles tendon, his chances of heading to South Africa with the English national team are slim to none.  While I have never made it a secret that I think the golden child of football is one of the most overrated players, I also have a tremendous amount of respect for him and his heart.

Beckham can never be accused of not loving the sport and not giving everything he can for his teams. Unlike other international players - such as Paul Scholes - he clearly loves pulling on the Three Lion's kit. Whether or not his chase to be the most capped English player is seem as a gimmick of the Beckham marketing machine or an athlete overstaying his welcome, I do not think one can question the will and desire that Becks has to carry on for his nation.

So what does this mean for the player, England and the Galaxy? First, if Beckham can come back I am sure he will do whatever it takes to return to the pitch as soon as he can. I do not think that Becks will want his career to end on such a note. I think the loss will be more hard felt for the English national team. Why? With all the controversy surrounding John Terry the loss of their former captain and iconic leader will potentially create a void in the dressing room. In addition, Capello's ability to use Becks as a late game veteran substitute made England that much more dangerous. Beckham remains dangerous on dead balls and crosses, something that could have been very useful late in a game. Finally, England's other wingers are not lighting the world on fire currently. As for the Galaxy, I do not think they will feel as much of the impact - their season is only starting to get into the preseason swing of things. Beckham could be back over the summer or early fall and therefore could have an impact on the MLS season.

I feel for Beckham, as the Sports Illustrated article points out, he has worked hard to make himself available and ready to head to South Africa and that has now been placed in serious jeopardy. Let us hope that golden balls makes a swift recovery and can leave the game his way, not on crutches.

Beckham gets the business in LA

So Golden Balls gets booed during his debut for the Galaxy. Ah fans will be fans. The fans were up in arms because Beckham had the audacity to try and work out a deal with Milan to make his move permanent. How dare he!!! Who would ever want to give up playing in the MLS for Serie A? I cannot fathom why Golden Balls even thought about not coming back to the MLS to face the likes of Real Salt Lake, Red Bull and the Rapids...much better than playing against Inter, Roma, or Juventus. All joking aside, I understand why Beckham wanted to stay in Europe and I guess I understand why the fans did what they did. The one issue the fans need to get a grasp of, the MLS remains an inferior product to what is offered in Europe. How can you fault any player for wanting to play for AC Milan? I realize that the fans take this as an insult, how dare a player turn his back on their beloved Galaxy??? I have always been a critic of Golden Balls, but one thing I will never accuse him of is not being dedicated to his trade, his team and his country. I think that it is unjust that fans, obviously fueled by the Donovan comments, are slinging the insults at Becks. Beckham has given the MLS and the Galaxy all that he has to offer during his time in LA. Wanting to move on to another league, a vastly superior one, should not be used against a player who did play hard when he put on the #23 kit. The Galaxy fans need to get over it, understand that any player worth their salt would seek to play at the highest level of competition. Just because their binky, Landycakes, keeps coming back to LA, does not mean other players want that...and I am sure Landycakes would have been happy if Bayern had looked to keep him for the season. Wonder if the fans will boo him now that Livorno is interested in bring him to Italy.

Fans will be fans...I guess the one positive is that the footie fans in LA have some passion, not sure that would have been the case 10 years ago.

Oh the Landycakes - MLS - Spiceboy drama

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=659931&sec=mls&cc=5901

Ah where to start with this one....Landycakes calling out someone for not showing up, Lalas telling a player he is not the MVP, Lalas being called out as being over his head....oh my. Not quite sure what to make of this, but if this is a teaser to purchase the book it might just have worked with me! I think it is a bit ironic that Landycakes calls out a player for not "showing up." Something that I would accuse Donovan of doing in big games. And based on this short blurbs, what we thought was all true but glossed over - Beckham did not want to come to the MLS and the only reason he did was that at the time no major European club wanted him! Of course Lalas, another beacon of intelligent American soccer management, made it a huge affair when they signed him...while he should have, but I fear he believed his own spin and thought that Becks really wanted to play in the MLS and that he was going to give 110%. Funny, but once a big club like Milan calls, who goes running back to Europe? And who can blame Becks??? It will be interesting to see what else is in the book, but from this snippet it is clear that the Beckham experiment did not turn out as the MLS hoped.

I might have to put this on my amazon list.

The Beckham saga

I keep reading, what appears every day, is that Beckham is on again off again to staying in Northern Italy. It would appear that the loan move to Milan is wanted to be made permanent. What a surprise. Which player would not want to stay at the San Siro playing against Lazio, AS Roma, Inter, Juventus, let alone the European teams in the Champions League? Seems a much better footballing experience than having to play in front of 8,000 fans in football stadiums like Gillette or Giant Stadium. Seems like a much better experience than toiling for the dysfunctional Galaxy. Seems like a much better experience for the entire Beckham brand name. Seems like playing for one of the best footy leagues in the world would be a better experience than playing for the MLS (just don't ask Lalas how he views the MLS in the grand scheme of football leagues). So I think that a the end of this dance between MLS and Milan that Becks will end up at the San Siro for a protracted time. Which will be somewhat remarkable - Beckham would have played for 3 of the most storied and trophied clubs in the world - Manchester United, Real Madrid and AC Milan in the world's top 3 leagues...as well as having played in the MLS in the midst of all these teams. So why is this interesting to me? Other than the fact Beckham has run back to Europe at the first chance he had, even though the MLS was supposedly a great place to be...oops. I think this move will determine if Gourcuff is brought back after his loan spell with Bordeaux is over.

With Becks in the mix full time at Milan, the midfield is once more packed and might not allow for a Gourcuff to get the time and run he needs. With Kaka and Pirlo pulling the strings in the middle of the midfield, Becks will slot out wide, so where do we slot Gourcuff? I think the writing on the wall is that if Gourcuff wants to get any time on the pitch he will either need to have Milan sell of some players - such as Kaka to Manchester City, or hope Milan builds around Gourcuff as the high central midfielder with Pato and Kaka up front, maybe Ronaldino on the wing and Becks on the other, with Pirlo deeper....um....doubtful. Where would Gattusso play how about Seedorf???

I hope that the Beckham deal goes through and that this allows Gourcuff stay at Bordeaux.