One of the most sought after players in the world at the moment, although not by top clubs from the best leagues, is 37 year old David Beckham, which makes up for his age with a lot of other things.
For instance – he can still play football pretty well. While his fitness and work rate have taken a hit over the last couple of years, naturally, his set pieces are still a danger from anywhere on the field, be it a free kick or a corner. Some players are worth having just for what they can create 5-10 times a match from dead ball situations, and few are as reliable in that area like Beckham.
At the moment, David Beckham has 12 formal offers from clubs after completing his five seasons with the Los Angeles Galaxy, scoring 18 goals in 98 matches and winning two consecutive MLS Cups with the team.
Beckham has been made offers from Europe, South America, North America, South Africa, Russia, China and the Middle East, though it is understood not from Qatar, and not from the Premier League, where Beckham would have probably liked to return to for a final season or two.
Paris Saint-Germain are in the picture, which does give the Qatari angle to this story. Beckham is convinced that the next team he chooses to play for should be his last, and is hoping it’s a club that he can have a massive effect on, professionally and financially, which means he’d like to join a team he knows he’ll be playing a lot in. China and the UAE offer the most money to him, but being that far away from mainstream media attention and the relevancy of what he does there on a bigger scale is limited.
Playing in South America for one of the Brazilian teams sound like the most intriguing of options – the money is very good at Brazil at the moment, while the league itself is not some sort of bubble division that is just a way for rich men to spend their money on something without it actually meaning something to the community.
Whatever his decision and direction may be, Beckham is ready to make and take it in the next few weeks, not about to wait a few months for the summer transfer window. At 37, after winning and doing so much, he’s still hungry to play football, but only in a place where he won’t have to worry too much about minutes, and knows he means something to the club beyond just his name and face.