Not done If you read the article, it states that the transfer is pending on Joan Laporta's election as president of the club on Sunday. This obviously ups his chances, but it's not a done deal.
A couple of side notes... Laporta is saying that even if he does not win the election he will turn the negotiations over to whoever does win. Also, Beckham is currently saying he has no interest in moving to Barca. My take... Laporta is saying this so it appears that he has the intentions of the club as his first priority. Also Beckham is saying this because he knows that the chance of him moving to Barcelona is still around 50% at the best so until a deal is more concrete his stance is that he is a ManU player. However, once a deal is put in place, albeit through a Laporta victory or whatever situation, I think Becks will welcome a move to Barca. Another interesting tidbit, I read that Laporta is comparing the Beckham move to the Cruyff one back in the 70's when barcelona were struggling and then the arrival of Cruyff obviously led to great success for the club. I dont know if Beckham is in the same class as Cruyff, but its an interesting thought nonetheless.
If Laporta said compared those two he is A)a canny politician invoking Cruyff's tenures at Barca and showing the Cules he's a fan at heart; B)putting so much pressure on the squad/coach that they can not possibly live up to it; C)setting himself up for a Gaspart-like reign of error D)the whole thing is a comic mistake, Laporta is actually negotiating for John O'Shea Tony
The way this season has gone I vote for 'D'. ha ha No way, no how does Beckham compare to Cruyff on the pitch. If he, too, can win a handful of Ballon D'Or trophies and oversee a 5-nil thrashing of Los Blancos in Madrid then I will change my mind. I understand why LaPorta needs to make the analogy, but he is playing with fire by invoking Johan. I think Mike is on track though. I think Becks is doing some posturing. After all, he is still the de facto captain of the England side and the English punters won't take kindly to him slagging Man U and hopping a plane south. If it looks like the whole thing was done without his approval then he wins the sympathy vote. I guess we'll find out in the next week or so how this soap opera turns out!
The other leading candidate has stated he is not interested in Beckham. This means the election will be decided on how many women are voters.
Im afraid Real hijacked our signing OR Beckham and ManU are using us as bait to let the world know that Becks is for sale (and start a bidding war)
You miht be interested to read this. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/2980958.stm Particularly the part that says... "On Tuesday, Beckham released a statement saying he was "very disappointed and surprised" to learn of United's acceptance of Barca's bid, and has "no plans to meet Mr Laporta or his representatives." "That's what you have to do as a player," said our source. "If Beckham were to say, "I fancy a move," it could be argued that he was asking for a transfer and then he wouldn't get the balance of his signing-on fee or loyalty bonus from United. " That's probably pretty accurate.
According to Laporta, Barca have first option on Becks; http://u.tv/newsroom/indepth.asp?id=11856&pt=s
Doesn't Becks have to agree to it first, before he goes? I'm rather surprised ManUre is willing to part ways with him.
There's a thread around here somewhere with a good article on that. Man Utd. doesn't want him anymore and if he forces their hand and won't accept any trade deal, they supposedly said he would collect wood on the bench all year.
The plot thickens. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/2997700.stm It seems like Real are going to have 3 players on the right wing - Beckham, Figo and Ronaldinho...
Darn. We could have used him sometimes off the bench for the Galaxy. Oh well. Maybe we can still get Diego.
Poor Steve MacManaman is going to be surgically attached to the bench now (unless he is not even chosen as a substitute). I wonder why he is dead set against a transfer. At his age, basically sitting out for an entire season seems like a waste. Maybe Liverpool should do a transfer for Morientes and have Real Madrid throw in Macca too. Also - Real Madrid would really be foolish not to sell Geremi at this point. Where is he going to play, defensive midfield? He is never going to move Beckham, Guti, Figo, Zidane, MacManaman, et al out of the first team. Maybe Real are simply trying to squeeze every bit of money they can out of his transfer. Especially if Ronaldinho comes to Real - I am sure he would slot in more at Figo's position than Raul's - unless Real blows up their current formation and reforms it around a three man backline. Can you imagine a three man backline with Hierro, Helguera and Pavon? If you could ever get the ball away from their midfield, I think that Barcelona does not need to worry about being able to score against Madrid.
Err, seems to me they need to worry about (gulp-smirk), the Uefa Cup run. Gotta walk before ya run lad, walk before ya run...
In the immortal words of Gandhi... Get Bent and try not to be such an ass all the time... VISCA EL BARCA Visca Catalunya
Mario and all BS's Barca fans, Losing Beckham is embarassing, but he is Glamour/moneymaking player(who is very good, i'll grant you.), but Barca need players who get results on the pitch, not on the cash register. Oh, and Athletic is getting that UEFA spot!