Alexi Lalas is skeptical of another David Beckham loan, and understandably so. The last time the Galaxy midfielder went out on loan, the 35-year-old tore his Achilles, causing him to miss practically all of the 2010 season. Ostensibly, that was in preparation for the World Cup, and although we hear that a new loan spell would be to regain the form he lost during his long layoff, the rationale is far more brow furrowing.
Alexi Lalas Questions David Beckham Loan Ambitions, Says Galaxy Star’s ‘Taken A Tremendous Amount Out Of Major League Soccer’
After all, Major League Soccer does observe a preseason as well as a long regular season that, acting as a post-season qualifying tournament, gives Beckham a chance to get in shape. Galaxy were fine without Beckham for most of 2010. They may not need him at the beginning of 2011. While it’s easy to buy into the logic that Beckham’s presence would have buffered against Los Angeles’s second half swoon, that swoon only cost them momentum. The team still has the 2010 Supporters’ Shield.
All of which is to say that Beckham doesn’t appear to have a reason to go out on loan. Oh, except this one: To play football at a high level, possibly for a world renown team. You know: What almost every kid dreams of doing when they’re young? While those dreams have to be balanced against his obligations to the Galaxy. it’s not hard to empathize with Beckham’s want to be loaned out.
But striking that balance exposes inconsistencies, fosters bitter feelings from Major League Soccer fans who’ve never enjoyed a good relationship with the league’s biggest star. At some point, David Beckham has to give up his dreams, some might say. Many MLS fans feed Beckham agreed to do so when he signed-on with the Galaxy.
But Lalas told BBC 5 live: “American soccer fans say David Beckham has given a lot, but he’s also taken a tremendous amount out of Major League Soccer.”
“The reason David Beckham went over to Milan was to prepare, in theory for the World Cup,” he added.
“I think that was commendable and understandable to a certain extent - but now it is happening once again.”
Lalas also drew a contrast between Landon Donovan's choice not to go out on loan and the rumors surrounding Beckham:
I have been playing nearly non-stop for the past two years and I believe that this decision will allow me to perform at my best for the Galaxy,” he said in December.
“When Landon Donovan comes out and says that it certainly puts pressure on David Beckham,” added Lalas.
As much as a brief radio interview can, that even-handed portrayal helped highlight the underscoring a Beckham loan.
Lalas put the Milan dalliance into the appropriate context, though many fans in the States still harbor ill-will toward Beckham’s willingness to miss Galaxy matches for Serie A. Beckham cited the honor of playing for Milan, something many fans inferred as turning his back on Major League Soccer, further widening a fissure which, opened by The Beckham Experiment, Backham’s never tried to close.
Even those who empathized with Beckham on Milan will have trouble supporting a new loan. While playing for a club like Tottenham Hotspur or Bayern Munich would be another eye-grabbing line on an exemplary resumé, it's difficult to reconcile the timing: coming off an injury, no World Cup to prepare for, and needing to rebuild his relationship with fans. If Beckham goes out on loan, we can assume he's elected to deprioritize the latter.
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