By Mark Vincent Lincir
Reports of David Beckham passing on PSG’s offer of $1 million a month must be sending shockwaves throughout the soccer world!
Wait a minute…it’s not?
Maybe that’s because he’s 37 years old! That’s ancient in soccer terms. But don’t get me wrong…everything David does is news.
He should be training for the PGA tour instead of PSG. But give credit to the Beckham brand for still commanding such an astronomical salary for his advanced soccer age. Ultimately, it’s the brand that clubs like the Los Angeles Galaxy pay millions for. Though he does contribute on the field, it’s not enough to warrant the kind of sick money he commands (especially in a league like MLS where rookies are forced to carpool to training to save $$$ on gas!).
The one thing that Beckham has done in the United States better than anyone besides maybe Pele is expose the global game to Americans that might not otherwise be interested. I don’t know what Celtics center Kevin Garnett’s interest in soccer was before Beckham, but it was great to hear that he has invested in Roma.
LeBron owns a piece of Liverpool and now Garnett at Roma. Will we one day see these towering supremely talented athletes signing short term loan deals to be corner kick specialists at their respective European clubs? All the holding in the world wouldn’t stop them from scoring goals at will.
USMNT manager Jurgen Klinsmann needs to give Norwich left back Zak Whitbread a serious look. He’s tall, strong, left-footed and is playing at a high level. If Bornstein could play there, so can this guy. He’s been in Europe for a long time and obviously can play under pressure. Give him a four or five game run there, I guarantee he’ll become the United States’ best option at that spot.
Wilmer Cabrerra has departed on mutual terms (supposedly) from his post as U17 Men’s team manager. If I had to guess, I would say that Jurgen (the BIG BOSS…yes, bigger than Sunil) will bring in one of his own guys to take that very critical spot. No offense to Wilmer, but a couple of years ago I saw the U17s play in Phoenix in a U17 international tournament and it made me want to cry and everyone I spoke to in the crowd was CONVINCED that they knew a player better than any of the players the U.S. fielded in their loss that night. THAT IS A MASSIVE PROBLEM!
There should be no doubt that who we field at all levels are the best of the best. If that means tearing down all the political walls that have been built over the years and scratching all the favoritism that we KNOW comes into play when selections are made…SO BE IT.
The U.S. needs to get better at ALL LEVELS. It should be better at all levels. And I am convinced that it WILL GET BETTER. It will just take time. But Americans are an impatient breed and won’t give Jurgen a lot of time…so get on with it and make it better asap!
I can’t believe some of the upsets that have been happening over the holidays…Fulham beating Arsenal! Sunderland trumping Man City. Man Utd LOSING to Blackburn??? What gives? I think that all of those top clubs are exceptional on offense, but defensively I think they are ALL suspect.
Jonny Evans? Not good enough! Kolorav? A liability. Arsenal? Can’t even name one of their backs…that’s a huge problem right there!
I would like to see one of those big-time clubs take a chance on one of the bright young American defenders we have. FC Dallas big man George John to Arsenal maybe? Galaxy toughguy Omar Gonzalez to Man City to give Lescott (who has never impressed me by the way) a run for his money?
He’s a midfielder but I would love to see him move during the break even though he does great things for Fulham…Clint Dempsey to Chelsea? How exciting would that be?
The moves will come, but they need to come quick. Don’t know if it’s the cold weather (it almost dipped down into the mid 70s today) or my new diet…no more holiday CHOCOLATE…but I’m out of patience and ready for a record-breaking transfer period. Let the madness begin! And don’t forget to tell me when it’s over.
Mark Vincent Lincir is the author of the traumatically hilarious book A SOCCER LIFE IN SHORTS
You can follow him on twitter at www.twitter.com/MVLINCIR
