Article by Andrew Hill
Good news for Los Angeles Galaxy as the English midfielder is planning his comeback after around six months of absence due to an injury.
Although it is gong to take him a few more weeks to be physically fit and reach his optimum level, David Beckham has scheduled his return to competition for this upcoming Saturday, September 11, when Los Angeles Galaxy receives Columbus Crew. The Spice boy hopes to see action for at least 15 to 20 minutes, in order to start getting into shape again. So far his signs of recuperation have been positive during this week’s training sessions, and now it is up to Coach Bruce Arena to make the call if he is going to please Beckham and the fans.
The injury that has kept LA’s No. 23 out of action took place on March 14 when -sadly for him- his Achilles tendons was hurt. At that time he was playing for the second time on loan with AC Milan from Italy, and they where facing Chievo Verona when the unfortunate event took place. This injury caused him to lose what could have been his fourth World Cup participation, after participating in France 1998, Korea and Japan 2002, and Germany 2006.
Immediately after the injury, on March 15, he went through surgery in a desperate try to be ready for the World Cup, but the miracle didn’t happen. Surgeon Dr. Sakari Orava explained that Beckham’s tendon was completely torn and that the recuperation was going to be slow. The 35-year-old midfielder flew to Finland for rehabilitation.
On August 11th he was able to join the training sessions again, and he began to work apart from his teammates. Doctors expected that he would be ready to play on October first, but now that he has been able to train with the group and has not shown signs of discomfort, and wants to anticipate his comeback.
“It is a bit difficult when you don’t play in games, that’s were you get the real fitness from”
Bruce Arena is not quite sure yet if Beckham will play, at least he has not done any public announcement so far, so his return is still in doubt. In case he doesn’t see action Saturday, he could be doing so on September 18th against DC United. Arena doesn’t want to risk loosing a decisive player like him for what is coming ahead, and right now they are leading the competition with 44 points, along with the Crew, so there is no urge to rush things up.
Adding a little bit of pressure to his coach, the Spice boy said that “it is a bit difficult when you don’t play in games, that’s were you get the real fitness from”. His spirit of competitiveness and the good sensations in the training sessions have Beckham with his fingers crossed as he looks forward to see some action during the weekend. Despite been a 35 year-old veteran, retirement is not a word that he has taken time to sit down and think about, and one thing he found out during his injury is that “working out was something I’ve done for the last 25 years, and to not being able to do it was tough for me.”
About the Author
Andrew Hill has been a prominent writer on regular International Football games, sports news and the sportsbetting industry for many exceptional sports web sites. You may reprint this article in its full content, please note no modifications to it are accepted.