by Zach Bigalke

Created on: January 30, 2009

David Beckham was to be the face of Major League Soccer. He was to do to the American league what stars like Pele and Franz Beckenbauer did for the North American Soccer League in its heyday - provide a big-ticket draw through the turnstiles and a gateway for other stars on the wane to bring a few final years of glory across the Atlantic. His landmark contract created the conditions for the inception of the Designated Player Rule, the aptly-nicknamed "Beckham Rule", allowing each franchise to earmark a roster slot for one marquee player outside of the league's salary cap. His wife, Victoria, was to launch a solo music career along with getting into the acting business; their sons would become Californian royalty. He would lead the Los Angeles Galaxy to MLS championships. The stage was set for a lucrative end to a storied career...

At least, that was before Beckham engineered a two-month loan to Serie A powerhouse AC Milan. The thing is, as lucrative as his deal with MLS might have been, the experience of playing at the Home Depot Center is hardly the same as being surrounded by tens of thousands of rabidly fanatical supporters of the rossoneri. And in just a few performances, his trademark midfield presence has returned. He has scored two goals in the past two games for Milan - the first coming off a superb finish of a Clarence Seedorf pass to beat Bologna goalkeeper Francesco Antonioli on the road in the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara, the second a patented bending free kick past Rubinho of Genoa which proved to be Milan's only goal of the contest.

Andrea Pirlo, another Milan midfielder, has already begun lobbying for Beckham's long-term stay at the San Siro. The Italian Football Association has already declared that Beckham and Milan will be exempt from the deadline of the trade window; his loan is due to expire on March 9. With Beckham likely to earn himself a place back in the starting eleven of the English national team should he continue to perform on a comparable level to his first few performances in Serie A play, his legacy would certainly receive far more burnishing from a remainder in Milan. Victoria can certainly find happiness in one of the world's fashion capitals. Brooklyn, Romeo and Cruz will certainly be able to pick up Italian. Beckham could cement his legacy by playing his way back to national-team play, outside of the domestic glare but still playing in an elite league.

As much as MLS Commissioner Don Garber and the L.A. Galaxy will fight to retain Beckham - after all, he is their biggest draw and is still, as his Milanese sojourn has attested, an elite talent - it is hard to believe he would turn down the chance at Serie A success and a return to international play for what is ultimately a marketing ploy. If AC Milan want their man, they'll get their man... and apparently Beckham has been on the radar. He's proving his worth to the team, scoring twice and preserving a point through his troubles. David obviously was able to pick his placement; there's a reason he's donning the red and black...

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