By CALEB SONNELAND
Despite the fact that there's still a full month until the January transfer window opens, the possibility of LA Galaxy star David Beckham linking up with Paris St. Germain has the team talking.
Players Kevin Gameiro, Sylvain Armand and Christophe Jallet all voiced their support for the seasoned veteran signing on, and with the financial clout of PSG might be enough to land Beckham at the club.
Beckham's contract expires at the end of the MLS season in November and PSG is said to be sniffing around the player along with the likes of Manchester United and Tottenham.
The Englishman has long been linked with a move back to Europe, and if his contract expires, it's looking increasingly likely that Beckham could make the return.
The player joined the Galaxy in 2007 for a five-year-deal worth $32.5 million from Real Madrid. He has since spent time on loan at AC Milan as well as trained with Tottenham.
Here are some other stories from across the world to keep you Monday rolling along:
FOREIGN OWNERS COULD VOTE TO SCRAP RELEGATION/PROMOTION
Richard Bevan, chief executive of the League Managers' Association, mentioned the possibility that, due to the increase in foreign ownership in the English Premier League, the relegation and promotion of clubs between the Premiership and Championship could be done away with.
Bevan believes that if "four or five" teams come under foreign ownership, the owners could swing the vote to get rid of the promotion and relegation process.
Bevan and the LMA are taking measures in trying to prevent the motion by submitting a parliamentary inquiry to England's FA suggesting a licensing system for clubs.
Of the 20 teams in the EPL, half are under foreign ownership.
SUAREZ "UPSET" BY ABUSE CLAIMS
Liverpool striker Luis Suarez made headlines the last time Liverpool and Manchester United clashed for his stellar display, however, this time around, he's in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
Suarez battled with United captain Patrice Evra on several occasions on Saturday, with the conflict reaching its peak in the second half when the two players exchanged heated words at length. Evra was shown a yellow card for pushing away Suarez's hand from his head.
Evra spoke to the media after the game and claims that the Uruguayan used a "certain word" more than 10 times during their exchange and that Suarez tried to wind him up.
However, Suarez spoke to the media about the incident for the first time since the game, saying that he is "upset" by claims that he racially abused Evra.
The FA has launched an investigation regarding the two players chief executive Gordon Taylor serving as a mediator in the issue.
MANCINI WANTS CITY STAY
Just under two years ago, Roberto Mancini took control at big-spending Manchester City, and now the Italian hopes to continue as the boss at the Etihad Stadium.
Mancini took over from Mark Hughes in December 2009 and is coming off a successful season which included an FA Cup final victory as well as one of the coveted Top 4 spots in the league, finishing third.
With the last year of his contract quickly approaching, Mancini insists he isn't in a rush to pen a deal, but insists that he would very much like to continue in his current position.
Manchester City faces Villareal tomorrow afternoon at 2:45pm ET, and the pressure is on the Blues to get a result after only taking a point from its first two matches.
“Its time for some MLS fans to realize that they are still far behind the European league model and level of play.”
Level of play, yes. League model, no. (Vehemently no.) Any sane MLS fan knows that the league is well behind the better European leagues in level of play. While I’m not going to argue that pro/rel is an inferior model at its core, it would be an inferior model in the United States.
A playoff-less system wouldn’t work well here (particularly when the league gets past 20 teams in size, and the balanced schedule goes out the window). The current playoff system should be tweaked IMO, but it provides something to play for for the mid-table teams whose games would become meaningless 2/3’s of the way through the season (when they’re out of danger of a supposed relegation spot).
The European model works in Europe, but there are reasons that the rest of the world has a wide variety of differing formats.
I’d say your first suggestion is correct. I have not heard any mention of foreign owners actually pushing for getting rid of relegation. It’s all speculation about what could happen or what American owners might want.