David Beckham could be heading to Australia after his management approached Football Federation Australia (FFA) about the English star playing in the country’s domestic league.
The 37-year-old Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder remains one of the game’s biggest names and his presence along with Italian superstar Alessandro del Piero would help ratchet up the competition’s global image.
FFA said yesterday Beckham’s management had offered his services for the current season. Reports said he wanted to play a 10-game guest stint once the US Major League Soccer season ends in two weeks.
“The approach from David Beckham’s people is another sign of how much the Hyundai A-League has grown in stature on a global basis,” an FFA spokesman said. “Beckham is a superstar on the world stage and he would be another massive signing for the A-League after the arrivals of Alessandro del Piero, Emile Heskey and Shinji Ono, but this approach remains at a very preliminary stage.”
The FFA said it was exploring all options available.
Sydney or Melbourne are considered the two most likely destinations, although for the move to happen FFA must support the deal financially.
The former Manchester United man is likely to demand a multimillion dollar fee, which would be out of reach of most Australian clubs.
The Sydney Morning Herald speculated that the newly-formed Western Sydney Wanderers would be the most realistic option, with FFA owning the team.
That would mean Beckham’s pay could come directly from the pockets of FFA chief Frank Lowy, the co-founder and chairman of shopping center giant Westfield, who has a fortune estimated at about US$5 billion.
Lowy previously offered to put the money up if the Wanderers wanted to sign Germany international Michael Ballack, but the deal fell through when coach Tony Popovic said he was not interested, the Herald said.
The team signed Japanese international Ono instead.
An indication of the sort of money Beckham could demand is reflected in Del Piero being on a two-year contract reportedly for US$2 million a season at Sydney FC.
MARRED FINAL: As most of Senegalese players walked off the pitch after a controversial decision, some supporters threw objects and attempted to get onto the pitch Senegal on Sunday won the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) as Pape Gueye’s extra-time winner sunk hosts Morocco 1-0 after a chaotic final that saw the eventual champions storm off the pitch late in the game. Brahim Diaz could have won the trophy for Morocco with a controversial spot-kick in the 24th minute of added time at the end of normal time as ugly scenes broke out in the stands. However, Senegal goalkeeper Edouard Mendy easily saved the weak attempted “Panenka” chip by the Real Madrid winger, who was clearly distracted by the long delay that followed the penalty award.
James Harden on Friday scored 31 points and came up big in overtime to help the Los Angeles Clippers erase a double-digit deficit on the way to a 121-117 NBA victory over the Toronto Raptors. Harden scored 16 points in the fourth quarter and overtime as the Clippers pushed their wining steak to five games despite the absence of star Kawhi Leonard with a sprained right ankle. The Clippers trailed by 11 entering the fourth quarter, but Harden drilled a pair of free-throws with 1:24 left in regulation to tie it and after misses from both teams, they went to
Qatar’s Nasser al-Attiyah on Saturday secured his sixth Dakar Rally car title in Saudi Arabia with Luciano Benavides scraping home by two seconds to claim the motorbike title. “We’ve worked very hard since last year. I might not be showing much emotion yet, but it’s there, deep down. We are so happy to win,” al-Attiyah said at the finish. Al-Attiyah, at the wheel of a Dacia, only had to avoid a final day slip-up to top the podium after bringing his career tally of stage wins to 50 on Friday. The 55-year-old, who took clay pigeon shooting bronze at the
Tobias Harris on Monday scored 25 points as the Detroit Pistons held off the Boston Celtics to score a 104-103 victory in their top-of-the-table Eastern Conference showdown. Harris was one of four Detroit players to finish in double figures, with Jalen Duren adding 18 points and point guard Cade Cunningham scoring 16 points with 14 assists. The win sees Detroit extend their lead at the top of the Eastern Conference to 31-10, 5.5 games ahead of second-placed Boston, who fell to 26-16 with the defeat. Jaylen Brown led the Celtics scoring with 32 points and almost snatched victory in the
RSS