I'm hoping to post a big-picture view of the Galaxy-Milan struggle a little later; but for now, a couple of news items and my thoughts.

Expansion Developments

There seems to be a lot of news on the expansion front, not the least of which is the startling revelation that by Joan Oliva, director general of Barcelona, that the club is "reevaluating" their involvement in the Marcelo Claure-led Miami bid. More than anything, I think this is just prudence on the part of Barcelona; it's hard to blame them for thinking twice in what is certainly a rough economic patch. I will say, however, that Barca should be paying attention to what is going on in Seattle, where the Sounders have now surpassed 20,000 season tickets. Although the cities are on opposite ends of the cultural spectrum, and the legacy of the Sounders from their previous incarnations in the northwest is certainly a factor, if the Catalan giants and their partner Claure market the team correctly, there is no reason it should not be a success. I'm not rooting for Miami in the expansion sweepstakes, but I am confident the team will draw well if placed there.

In Portland, Merritt Paulson is working with the city to finance the necessary PGE Park renovations without exposing the city to risk. It appears that Paulson realizes that with the economy as it is, it's he himself that will have to guarantee the loans, ensuring that any shortfalls in repayment will be his responsibility. I am actually actively rooting for Portland, so it seems to be good news. My opinion remains that at least a few MLS teams should be in medium-sized markets where competition for coverage is not as fierce.

Rumors of Montreal's reentry into the expansion race thanks to the astounding number of tickets sold for their Champions League clash with Santos is just that right now: a rumor. If something solid comes out, I'll let you know.

Oh, to be a fly on the wall at MLS headquarters right about now.

Landon's Mediocre, Bayern Falls

Things are not good for Bayern Munich right now. The team continues to struggle, after losing to 2-1 to Koeln today in Munich. Landon Donovan come on at the half, and aside from clearing a chance away from Bayern's line, made very little impact. I wasn't able to watch the game, so I don't have any first hand analysis (which I'm not supposed to do anyway); go to Goal.com to read the match report. It appears Donovan is going to return to MLS at the end of his loan, which I'm not sure it the worst thing for him. His place (and role) in the Bayern team was always going to be iffy; there are simply too many options for Donovan to get the first team minutes he needs. I'm confident that he'll play well for the Galaxy, which will either lead to a sale in the summer, or a free move to Europe in January.

Milan Fires Back

Adriano Galliani insists that the bid for Beckham will not be raised, something which would seem to kill any hope of a deal. I don't know that it's necessarily over yet between the two organizations, but it's not looking good for Beckham. I hope Leiweke reponds to Galliani's response, because these two going back and forth is the only thing keeping the story fresh. Galliani did make one statement that I took a little umbrage with:

"They see transfers as business in the States. In Europe transfers are made on a technical basis."

I'm pretty sure that's a giant load of Italian crap. European clubs are constantly working to make a profit on players bought and sold; just because Milan has the resources to care just a little less about the "business" aspect doesn't mean they aren't playing the game. I find it hilarious that both sides are playing the "bully" card at this point, with a little of the "who do they think they are?" card thrown in. In spite of myself, I'm actually starting to enjoy whole mess. I still believe that every day the "negotiations" drag on is another day of free publicity for MLS.

I'm adding this after reading the same story with slightly different quotes on soccernet: It appears Galliani was referring to the premium the Galaxy may be putting on Beckham because of his marketability; I guess Milan don't want to pay extra for that. Whether Milan wants to admit it or not, that is certainly part of what makes up Beckham's value.