DAVID BECKHAM is working on his Miami dream from home – and two superstar targets have zoomed into view.
Becks may be in lockdown over the other side of the pond but that hasn’t stopped him video-calling his Inter Miami staff weekly to make sure the squad is ready when the action finally restarts.
Gareth Bale and James Rodriguez are two players Inter Miami would be keen to sign
The Covid-19 crisis saw the start of Beckham’s Inter Miami stalled after just two games when MLS was suspended on March 12 although the planning continues.
Colombian ace James Rodriguez remains a target for Becks but now Gareth Bale – who has admitted he loves LA and playing golf there – and Barcelona’s Chilean midfield man Arturo Vidal have also been linked with moves to South Florida.
Vidal recently posted – and then deleted – a social media post of him standing in front of the Inter Miami logo while Bale remains unsettled at Real where Beckham has a good relationship with the club’s top brass.
Sporting Director Paul McDonough, speaking after the squad returned to training for the first time in seven weeks on Wednesday, refused to rubbish the links and admitted admiration for both La Liga stars.
David Beckham has been video-calling his Inter Miami staff weekly to make sure the squad is ready when the action finally restartsCredit: Instagram
McDonough, who has been taking part in Zoom calls with Becks, said: “We get linked with so many players and it hasn’t stopped through this situation. So, as opportunities and as players get presented to us, we just continue to address them.
“Some of them are just straight rumours. Some of them are interest but they may not line up with our goals or our financial valuation. There’re so many rumours, and I have to address rumours all the time and it’s great that a lot of people are linked with Miami but we’re just looking for the right couple of pieces here to finish it off.”
Both Vidal and Bale are set for big decisions this summer and with the MLS season just a few games old, a move to the US could be on the cards for one of them.
Inter Miami have one ‘Designated Player’ spot left and although Bale’s astronomical wages are problematic, Vidal is surplus to requirements at the Nou Camp and available.
Former West Ham target , 20-year-old Agustin Almendra of Boca Juniors, is also on Beckham’s radar.
Right now, however, Miami are just pleased to have their players back. MLS , who have suspended play until June 8 at the earliest, are allowing all clubs to have their players return based on advice from their local and state health authorities. Miami, Orlando, Atlanta and Sporting Kansas all took up the option.
Yet McDonough laid bare the stark reality of trying to resume normal service in the middle of a crippling global pandemic.
Players were only allowed on site after answering an MLS health and safety questionnaire and, after parking three spaces away from another car, were greeted by staff members wearing PPE clothing upon arrival.
Their temperatures were then taken and once an individual, one hour session was completed, they departed in a similar manner.
While the United Soccer League – which is effectively the second tier in the United States – has already introduced ‘non-contact training in small groups’, MLS are moving forward with extreme caution.
McDonough added: “We split the group into two segments and split the field into four.
“Players had to answer an MLS questionnaire which asked if they’d had a fever, if they had been ill or had a cough recently, where they had been in the last 14 days. Any player who was able to answer no to all those questions , they came to the site and also had their temperatures taken in the morning.
“There were two entry points to the fields – one on the east and west – we had athletic trainers in PPE gear, when players pulled in they were not allowed to park within three parking spaces of each other.
“A trainer would come to the car, take their temperature , sanitise their hands, the players would then put on a face mask and go to their assigned quadrant in the facility. We funnelled them all through, they did their work and the coaches were present while respecting social distancing barriers. No player was allowed in our building.”
While there have been over 38,000 confirmed cases in Florida, Miami-Dade county has been the worst hit with 432 deaths and 13,371 infections, according to stats released on Wednesday.
Broward, which houses the club training facility, has seen 5,553 cases with 219 people passing away.
McDonough said: “The players have found the last seven weeks very difficult with parks being closed and nowhere to workout but as soon as the parks started opening , we thought about everything because if they are in a park , you can’t protect them from people coming up to them and recognising them and wanting selfies.
“So we know we have great facilities and can put them in here in a protected environment, social distance from them to keep safe.”
David Beckham mocked by LA FC fans as they chant ‘you look lonely’ as Inter Miami lose first ever MLS match
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
