Beckham ready to play

| Mon, 01/05/2009 - 09:15

England midfielder David Beckham may make his debut with AC Milan already on Tuesday, when the Serie A team meets Hamburg in a friendly in Dubai, coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Monday.

''We want to show our best in order to put on a good show for fans and, of course, win,'' the AC Milan coach said in a pre-match press conference.

''Everyone is curious about Beckham and I can now say without hesitation that he is full member of the squad and thus will be available for the match. He has trained hard over the past days and he is ready,'' Ancelotti said.

The 34-year-old England midfielder came to Milan after Christmas on a three-month loan from Los Angeles Galaxy while it is in between seasons.

Beckham agreed to join the Serie A club in order to keep in shape and increase his chances of a call from England and former Milan manager Fabio Capello to add to his national caps tally, which currently stands at 107.

The former England captain needs only one more cap to match the 108 England record for midfielders held by Bobby Moore.

By playing on Wednesday, Beckham will increase his chances of making his Serie A debut when play resumes next weekend with Milan travelling to the capital to face AS Roma.

According to the Italian sports daily Gazzetta dello Sport, there is a clause in Beckham's contract with LA Galaxy which would allow him to leave at the end of the 2009 American season.

The daily added that his three-month stay at Milan will allow him a chance to see if he wants to play in Serie A and give the club an opportunity to evaluate whether they would be ready to make a substantial offer for the veteran player.

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