It was recently reported that AC Milan wanted to keep David Beckham (who is currently on loan to them from the L.A. Galaxy) and was willing to pay good money to do so. With Beckham playing so well since he's been there, nothing has changed, and in fact, AC Milan is more determined than ever to make sure Beckham remains with their club.
Beckham’s three-month loan from the Los Angeles Galaxy expires on March 8, but he has started all five matches and scored two goals.
“I think he does (want to stay), but I can only speak of what the club wants to do and Milan will do everything possible to have Beckham after March,” [AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani] told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
“It is evident that our will is there to keep him until the end of the season or even on a permanent transfer. There is hope, but contracts have to be honored. If the Galaxy want to start negotiations we will be happy to try, but they are right, the agreements are clear—on March 9 Beckham must return to America.”
The current contract says Beckham must return, but in all likelihood, he's going to be gone for good.
Right now, Milan’s friendly schedule includes Dubai, Glascow and Germany. There's a ton of money to be made in those matches alone (not to mention jersey sales), so the cost of paying the Galaxy $6.4M would be recouped fairly quickly.
Besides the financial piece being a non-factor for Milan, the fact that they have already included Beckham on their 25-man roster for the UEFA cup makes it even more likely that they'll find a way to retain his services. Once submitted, the UEFA cup roster is locked and cannot be changed. And under the current agreement with the Galaxy, Beckham would only be eligible for two games on February 18 and February 26. It's unlikely they'd make that commitment if there was a chance Beckham would be gone before the conclusion of the tournament.
As one Galaxy season ticket holder we know recently put it: He's so gone.
