By CALEB SONNELAND
With his contract at the LA Galaxy set to expire at the end of December, it's still unsure whether or not David Beckham will be playing in MLS for the 2012 season.
After the former England international helped his side to its third MLS Cup (the last coming in 2005), Beckham was quizzed about his well-publicized future in the game. He was, however, was non-committal, and it appears only he knows what lies in store in coming months.
Many thought that the result of last night's game could determine his decision going forward, but the Englishman was quick to refute those claims.
"I've said that all the way along," he said. "It doesn't matter what happens at the end of the season."
Beckham has been linked with clubs overseas in Ligue 1's Paris Saint-Germain and Premier League duo Tottenham Hotspur and Queens Park Rangers.
Here are some other stories to kick off your Thanksgiving week:
EBOUE ON END OF SHOCKING ABUSE IN TURKEY
Turkish soccer fans have a reputation for letting the heat of the moment get the better of them during games, but it's difficult to imagine that Arsenal old-boy Emmauel Eboue was ready for the level of abuse he was set to receive over the weekend in Galatasaray's 0-0 draw with rivals Besiktas.
Eboue was pelted all game long with seemingly whatever the Besiktas faithful could get their hands on. Whether it was a coins, bottles or lighters, every time the Ivory Coast international made his way to the sidelines, he was under fire.
Eboue made several pleas to the referee throughout the game but there was little solace as the projectiles continued to rain down upon him.
On the heels of what has been a very sensitive few months in terms of racism, questions have to be asked of Besiktas supporters and the level of tolerance in the game.
Here's the video of Eboue during the game.
ROONEY ABSENT FROM TRAINING
Wayne Rooney was the most notable absentee from Manchester United training today with a clash against Portugal's Benfica on the cards tomorrow at Old Trafford.
The English striker played a full 90 minutes in the club's EPL match over the weekend against Swansea, which makes his absence from training that much more interesting.
United refused to comment on Rooney's condition earlier today, but with a press conference coming up later today, it remains a virtual certainty that Sir Alex Ferguson will have to answer the question.
Jonny Evans, Danny Welbeck and Chris Smalling are all nursing injuries as well, but Patrice Evra looks ready to go after shaking off a virus.
AVB NOT WORRIED ABOUT AXE
Despite losing 1-2 at home to Liverpool over the weekend, Chelsea boss Andre Villa-Boas says he is not worried about the possibility of club owner Roman Abramovich giving him the axe.
Abramovich paid a world record £13 million to prise Villa-Boas away from FC Porto this summer, but the appointment has since been somewhat disappointing considering the hype surrounding the young manager.
The defeat to Liverpool was the third in four matches and marked the first time the club had lost back-to-back home games in eight years. Still, Villa-Boas insists he is not feeling the heat.
"The owner didn't pay £13 million to get me out of Porto to pay me another fortune to get out."
With former Chelsea interim manager Guus Hiddink now in the job market after quitting his post at the Turkish national team, there was some speculation that Hiddink may be brought in to steady the ship in London.
Last time Hiddink was in command at Chelsea, it was in a care-taking role following the dismissal of Luis Felipe Scolari, but Hiddink stepped in and won the FA Cup, leading to a massive show of support from the Chelsea fans.
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Think Beckham moves abroad? Where to? How distressing is it to watch the video of Eboue? Think United stands a chance without Rooney?
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“Ask any football fan and they will remember how Beşiktaş fans stood up for their Pascal Nouma. One week after referee Ali Aydın referred to the French striker as “the black player,” the Ä°nönü Stadium was filled with banners that read, “Hepimiz zenciyiz,” which means, “We are all black.”
Those darn racist Besiktas fans!
OBVIOUS racial abuse? Do you have any knowledge of Besiktas supporters? They’re anarchists, not racists. They have no history whatsoever of racist acts made towards opposing players.
If something is not done about those turkish fans, there just gonna keep doing it. Its all about money, someone’s gotta grow a pair and have the players play in an empty stadium, and not just beskitas but the whole entire turkish league, till the fans learn their lesson. The game should have been stopped too, the ref should be suspended as well. Its gross, fans like that from places like that dont deserve good players. Racism should be dead and in the past, but due to mankind’s ignorance it is alive. Soccer is supposed to unite cultures, those fans are not soccer fans, they are swines infiltrating what is supposed to be the beautiful game. All those anti-racism slogans and banners by fifa dont mean a god dam thing without someone enforcing the rule, and punishing those accountable. Telling someone whose a victim of racism is like telling a rape victim to shake hands with the rapist, it isn’t gonna solve anything and is a lazy-man approach to combating racism.
Eboue was ready for the level of abuse he was set to receive over the weekend in Galatasaray’s 0-0 draw with rivals Besiktas.
watch the video again, open your eyes this time
Isn’t that true for Turkey as well? Not every team is Fenerbahce and Besiktas.
Your arguing that players that play in the EPL, La Liga, Serie A, Bundeliga, Ligue 1 or for any European team that has a chance of playing Champions League soccer would not consider playing in the MLS. I agree! However, players such as Teemu Tainio, who played for Tottenham, Sunderland, Birmingham City and AJAX, who are at a bit past their prime, given the choice of playing in the MLS or another European team, he signed with the Red Bulls and is not getting DP money. Not sure what his other choices were but he is 31 and probably could have extended his European playing career.
If your idea to improve the quality of play in MLS is to attract players from the Turkish league, to go right ahead.
And in reference to half-empty stadiums, remember that average attendance is a statistical measure. So for every LA Galaxy and Seattle Sounders game played in a packed house, there are games with the Columbus Crew, San Jose, and FC Dallas where a whole 5,000 show up. So the point still stands