By Alan Duffy

Phwoar!

He may be well and truly into the autumnal phase of his career, however, at 36-years-old, David Beckham still has a craving for footie – with a place in Stuart Pearce’s Team GB side at the Olympics top of his to-do list.

The former Man Utd and Real Madrid superstar, who has just signed a new two-year deal with LA Galaxy said:

“Hopefully I’ll be involved in the Olympics. Obviously I want to be part of the GB team. I know how exciting it is for our country and our nation to have the Olympics in the East End of London, especially for me growing up there.”

“As long as I’m fit, healthy and in-form hopefully I have a chance of making the team. I’ve had conversations with Stuart Pearce but as for being captain, or even selected, that’s not been decided yet.”

“I’d love to be captain. I’ve been captain a few times for my country before and to lead them into the Olympics would be special for any player.”

Beckham is apparently one of 184 players who have indicated to The FA that they want to play at London 2012, but the fact that the sporting icon was a key member of the team that actually secured the Olympics for London is sure to weigh heavily in his favour. However, wouldn’t it be better for Pearce to build a more youthful Team GB?

Interestingly, on speaking about his new MLS contract, Beckham said that a couple of Premier League teams had been after his signature. Surely Sir Alex wasn’t hoping to partner Beckham with Scholes and Giggs in the United midfield, was he!?

                          

Thirteen years after coming this close – you should see how close I’m holding my fingers right now – to joining Villa from Wolves (a financial snag saw him toddle off to Coventry instead) in 1999, Robbie Keane has finally made the move to Villa Park on a two-month loan deal from LA Galaxy.

Here he is with his new work clothes, which we’re delightfully informed has the number ’20′ on the back for those who like to keep track of these things..

I’m sure he’ll ‘do a job’ as they say, but I wouldn’t expect miracles if I were a Villa fan. After all, Keane’s only managed three goals in his last 29 Premier League appearances.

Any thoughts you blighters?

(That’s right. No ‘boyhood club’ gag whatsoever! So proud of myself.)

                          

By Chris Wright

Becks and his Los Angeles-based galaxy of lesser stars are in Indonesia at the moment on an off-season trolley dash around the Pacific Rim, though the whole damn lot of ‘em were shown up on arrival by this Indonesian fan – who donned his hand-made and ridiculously dapper ‘football wizard robe’ (complete with ‘football wizard staff’) specially for the occasion…

If you’ll excuse the massive, sweeping generalisation, you’ve got to love these Indonesian fans – they really bring their ‘A’ game when it comes to looking like plonkers at football matches.

Video: 101GG

                          

By Chris Wright

David Beckham, to Robbie Keane, to Landon Donovan. Goal. Trophy. It sounds like something from a ridiculously tawdry soccer movie, but Donovan’s goal was enough to snare the MLS Cup in front of a record crowd at the Home Depot Centre in Los Angeles – landing Becks, who had to overcome injury and illness to play, with his first Stateside silverware in what is looking increasingly likely to be his last competitive match for the Galaxy (his contract expires next month, after a tour of Indonesia and the Philippines).

As for Keane, it’s not been a bad old week for him either – captaining his country to the European Championships a few days before landing the MLS title in his debut season.

Well played chaps, hearty handshakes all round.

Photos (open in new tab for larger images)…

Highlights…

Photos: PA

                          

By Alan Duffy

If there’s one player out there who has Arsenal DNA, then it’s former Highbury idol Thierry Henry. The French superstar has remained a massive fan of the Gunners since leaving north London for Barcelona in 2007.

Currently with the New York Red Bulls, the record-breaking former Gunner is now training with Arsenal in the MLS off-season. However, in a move that will disappoint those most sentimental of Gooners, manager Arsene Wenger has stated that he has no intention of re-signing his former golden boy on a short-term loan.

“I have not thought about that at all. At the moment we have a big squad and anyway, that problem cannot examined before the end of December.

“At the moment we have 26 outfield players so we have a massive squad. ”Thierry’s future is in the States. He is going back in February. Until then we will just help him to practise and keep fit.”

“Thierry loves football, and he loves Arsenal. To practise with us for him is a pleasure – for him and for us. I think it is an honour and a pleasure.

“An honour because he is a legend at the club and he is coming back, a pleasure because when he is on the football pitch, he is still a great player.”

Still, with Marouane Chamakh failing to impress and Park Chu-Young still coming to terms with English football, having Henry on the bench would surely be a decent option. He may not be as quick as he once was, but playing behind Robin van Persie, the Frenchman could still light up the Premier League for a couple of months.

Click here to see photos of the striker back training with Arsenal.

While here’s a video to remind us all of just how fantastic Henry was at Arsenal, featuring every single one of his 226 goals for Arsenal. It’s 14 minutes long but worth watching all the way through!

                          

By Alan Duffy

With an MLS cup final on Sunday, and a Euro 2012 play-off second leg on Tuesday, veteran striker Robbie Keane is enjoying a rather successful time at the moment for both club and country.

With the Republic all but qualified for Poland and Ukraine courtesy of their 4-0 first leg mauling of Estonia, Keane’s club wanted their star striker to miss the second leg and return home to LA to prepare for the MLS cup final. However, eager to savour the moment when (or if?) Ireland actually do officially qualify for Euro 2012, Keane has decided to put country ahead of club.

“The job is still not done yet. We have to be professional and do the job properly,” said the attacker. “They requested me to come back with the final (against Houston Dynamo) on Sunday, but this could be one of the greatest moments in Irish history for me playing for my country. To miss a special night – hopefully – like this, it wouldn’t feel right.”

Apparently Galaxy have accepted Keane’s decision, although if he gets injured against Estonia, the Americans may not be so understanding.

                          

By Alan Duffy

In a heartening new development from across the pond, it has emerged that the fast-growing MLS has now taken the game to new heights in the US. New reports now put soccer as the third-best attended sport in America, ahead of stalwarts such as the NBA and NHL.

One particular success story has been the growth of the Seattle Sounders, who managed an average attendence of over 38,000 at their home games in the 2011 season. The north-west’s more Euro-centric outlook has played a part in this huge success story while overall, a focus on steady growth rather than a reliance on flashy big names has also been key.

Players such as Brad Davis of Houston Dynamo and Real Salt Lake’s Kyle Beckerman have more than held their own alongside imports like David Beckham and Thierry Henry as the game in the States looks to develop homegrown talent.

Ignore all the usual clichéd anti-American nonsense, the success of MLS is now showing that there is a (very) sizeable and knowledgeable football fanbase in the USA. It’s all good.

                          

By Chris Wright

Pies would hereby like to extend our sincerest congratulations – if that’s not too patronising – to former Montreal Impact midfielder David Testo (we say ‘former’ because Testo is currently without a club after being released by the Canadian club last month), who made the decision to officially come out as gay in an interview with CBC Radio Canada yesterday.

Said Testo:

“Living the life of a professional athlete and being gay is incredibly hard. It’s like carrying around a secret, carrying around luggage and just never being allowed to be yourself.

“I’m gay. I didn’t choose this. This is just who I am. I really do regret not having come out publicly earlier. It’s something I struggled with my whole life and whole career.”

Well. Fucking. Done. Lad.

Indeed, there’s no Earthly reason for a player to be forced to disclose something as personal as his sexual preference either way, but the fact that two gay footballers have openly come out, while still playing, in the space of eight months (Swedish player Anton Hysen came out in March) and have had their life at least partially unburdened in the process of doing so is representative of progress – a shift in the direction of the greater good –  however slight.

                          

By Chris Wright

Dangerous crossing is such an underrated skill and nobody, repeat nobody has ever been able to swing a salvo into the penalty area quite like David Beckham – as his assist for Mike Magee to make it 2-1 during Galaxy’s Western Conference play-off victory over Real Salt Lake will duly attest to…

Robbie Keane then rounded off the scoring with a nifty little effort to make it 3-1 and send Galaxy through to the MLS Cup Final against Houston Dynamo on home turf in Los Angeles…

Videos: DT/MLS Soccer

                          

By Chris Wright

In which, during their 2-1 defeat at LA Galaxy last night, New York Red Bulls striker Luke Rodgers (once of Notts County if memory serves) almost decapitates a woman sat behind the advertising boards by petulantly blasting a ball into the crowd as it rolled over the touchline and missing the lucky dame’s head by inches…

That could’ve been messy.

Video: 101GG