Last tango in Paris:
PSG are confident they have landed David Beckham
David Beckham
is on the verge of signing for Paris Saint-Germain after being
offered an 18-month contract worth a staggering
£11.6million.
Beckham has been handpicked by PSG president
Nasser al-Khelaifi as part of his strategy to turn the French
club into a football superpower.
On Thursday Al-Khelaifi admitted that the
decision for Beckham was ‘between Tottenham and PSG’, but it is
understood the deal has since moved on in favour of a switch to
France.
Money is no object for their Qatari owners and
they are convinced Beckham is about to sign the deal to join
the Ligue 1 leaders in January. Spurs cannot compete with the
salary being offered to Beckham and there are no guarantees he will
play a significant role for Harry Redknapp’s team.
PSG stumped up the amazing deal during lengthy
negotiations with Beckham’s representatives and they believe they
have won the race to sign him.
Beckham’s career with LA Galaxy is over
after they won the MLS Cup against Houston Dynamo last Monday. He
is a free agent and able to sign for another club.
PSG believe he can help raise their profile
around the world and take them to their first French title since
1994. Worldwide shirt sales will go through the roof, but he is
being brought in by PSG to attract some of the biggest names in the
game.
Beckham believes his game will be suited to the
pace of French football but they want him to play in the Champions
League next season.
He has starred for three of the world’s biggest
club sides, having started his career at Manchester United and gone
on to play for Real Madrid and AC Milan.
Al Khelaifi, who is also general manager of sport
at Qatar TV station Al Jazeera, has approved the first PSG match to
be shown live this weekend on the station’s football
channel.
They take on Marseille this weekend, but PSG’s
matches will be broadcast across the Middle East every week when
Beckham signs.
Meanwhile, Great Britain coach Stuart Pearce
admitted Beckham is involved in his plans for the 2012 Olympic
Games. Pearce said: ‘He’s certainly on a long list of
people.’
Big money: PSG smashed the Ligue 1 transfer record when
they bought Javier Pastore
