Galaxy Willing To Continue Beckham Talks Despite MLS Deadline

Galaxy Appear Willing To Continue Beckham Talks

The MLS Galaxy appear "willing to continue negotiating" with Italian Serie A club AC Milan regarding Milan's bid to keep MF David Beckham, who is on loan to the club, "despite a deadline set" by MLS for the deal to be completed by last Friday, according to Jere Longman of the N.Y. TIMES. Galaxy GM & coach Bruce Arena: "I think nothing is ever set in stone. There's wiggle room." But MLS Commissioner Don Garber said that the league will reconsider "only if a departure would "represent a public relations setback for MLS," but MLS officials and sports business experts said that in the long term, the Beckham venture, "even if curtailed, can be viewed in a positive light." Beckham "brought newfound buzz to MLS, helped increase league attendance and boosted its profile around the world." Arena added that the fact that Beckham "could not dominate spoke to the rising caliber of play in the league." Garber added, "Wherever I go in the U.S. and abroad, more people know about our league than before David played" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/19).

TIME TO LET HIM GO: SI.com's Arash Markazi wrote if the Galaxy stand in Beckham's "way, they would be making a bigger mistake than when they signed him." AC Milan Sporting Dir Umberto Gandini is scheduled to fly to L.A. today, and there is "no way he's leaving without Beckham." Markazi: "Forcing Beckham to return at this point would be ridiculous and totally go against the league's goal of making him an ambassador for the sport. How successful can a global ambassador be when he's telling everyone around the world that American soccer is subpar and that he wants to leave?" (FANNATION.com, 2/18).