David Beckham is still alive? And he still plays for the Galaxy?

David Beckham was activated on Thursday by the Los Angeles Galaxy, meaning he can play on Saturday in their match vs. Columbus.

"I think I could possibly be on the bench," Beckham, who in March tore his left Achilles' tendon while playing for AC Milan, said after training Thursday.

"Obviously, it's down to talking to the physio, the guys I've been working with and, obviously, the manager and deciding, but, fingers crossed, I'll be eligible to be on the bench."

Getting on the field is altogether something else. Beckham doesn't have the match fitness to contribute a whole lot, especially in a match so important to the Galaxy (13-5-5) and Crew (13-5-5), who are atop the Supporters' Shield standings. But he'd love the chance.

"I think I can play at some point of the game," he said. "With not playing for six months, there has to be kind of a careful ... a few minutes here and there. If I can play 10, 15, 30 minutes, then hopefully I can do that."

Galaxy coach Bruce Arena isn't so optimistic.

"I don't think that's likely," he said. "All taking him off the disabled list simply means [is] he's eligible [to play] in a game. You're required to be on [the injured list] for six weeks, and we're at the end of the six-week period.

"We fully expect him to be involved with our team for the month of September. All the decisions are going to be based day to day and week to week."

The 35-year-old Beckham says he thinks he could play for "quite a few more years," growing excited about the Galaxy's playoff push and the still-faint possibility of returning to the English national team someday.

Beckham is less interested in playing again for a European club. After several years of nearly nonstop play, Beckham indicated he's likely to decline a loan to AC Milan or another team in favor of a more relaxing winter.

"I need that -- my body needs that," Beckham said. "I've been hitting it quite hard for the last couple of years, and this injury is because of that, so I think now it's time maybe for me to look at myself and look at my fitness."

While focused on Los Angeles' remaining season, Beckham hasn't written off the possibility of playing again for his country. England manager Fabio Capello was widely criticized last month for saying Beckham was too old to play for the national team again, forcing Capello to backpedal.

"I've always had a good relationship with Fabio, and that's not changed," Beckham said. "He's England manager, and he has to look to the future, look to some great, talented young players coming through. These players need to be given the chance, and they will be. But obviously the manager is aware that there needs to be some old heads in there, and some experience.

"If I'm part of that, then great, but like I said, my main objective right now is to get myself fit and playing again."

My thoughts and opinions on Becks have been expressed long ago so I don't really have anything new to add here other than I wish him good health and no further injuries before his playing days are over.

Costa Rica hires a new coach, preferably one that doesn't let them miss the World Cup

Say what you want about CONCACAF (namely that it's terrible) but you have to admit that Mexico and Costa Rica are quality teams and always the U.S.' biggest tests in qualifying and tournaments.

Ricardo La Volpe was hired to be Costa Rica's new coach as they try to move on from their choke job extrodinaire against the U.S. last fall that cost them a spot in the 2010 World Cup.

He's from Argentina and he last coached Mexico at the 2006 World Cup.

Costa Rica played in the 2002 and 2006 World Cups and has been a force in Central American soccer. It failed, however, to qualify for the World Cup in South Africa and has fired two full-time coaches in the last year -- Rodrigo Kenton and Rene Simoes. The team has been handled recently by interim coach Ronald Gonzalez.

La Volpe coached Mexico to the round of 16 at the 2006 World Cup, where the team lost to Argentina. La Volpe is expected to begin coaching Costa Rica in January and will be on the bench for next year's Copa Centroamericana, the regional championship.

La Volpe is known as an outspoken coach. He met with Costa Rican officials several weeks ago but reportedly balked at signing after disagreeing on compensation if he were fired. His salary is reported to be $50,000 a month.

Costa Rica was only 20 seconds from qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. The Ticos led the United States 2-1, a score that would have allowed them to advance. But the Americans scored in the closing seconds in stoppage time to salvage a draw.

The tie gave Honduras the third automatic qualifying spot. Costa Rica subsequently lost a playoff against Uruguay for the final spot in the 32-team World Cup.

Costa Rica had been first in its qualifying group early on, but three straight losses to Honduras, Mexico and El Salvador sent them tumbling and cost Kenton his job. Simoes was called in to coach the last three matches against Trinidad, the U.S. and Uruguay.

Let me be the first to welcome La Volpe aboard and wish him plenty of losses when he plays our boys.

Get well soon Diggler

As self-proclaimed members of the Dirk Kuyt fan club it pains us to tell you that our boy hurt his shoulder in practice with the Netherlands and his club coach, Roy Hodgson of Liverpool, think's Kuyt could be out for longer than four weeks.

Kuyt sustained the injury during training with the Netherlands national side this week and was immediately ruled out for four weeks by Liverpool's medical staff.

While Kuyt said earlier on Wednesday he hopes to be fit to face his former side FC Utrecht in the Europa League on Septemer 30, Hodgson is concerned that the Dutchman may be unavailable for a prolonged period of time.

"It could be more than four weeks," Hodgson said. "It's one of those injuries where it's very difficult for the doctor to say and I think four weeks is a very conservative estimate. If we're lucky it could be earlier, but it could be longer. We have to be very careful because it's the type of injury that has to be treated with a lot of respect.

"It's a great blow for us because Dirk is an important member of our first team. He does a job which is not easy to replace because he has all the qualities required for that role on the field.

"I was very sad to see such a thing happen, especially in a training session. It would have been bad enough to happen playing for the national team in a competitive match, but for it to happen in training was even more of a blow.

"He's a quick mender and he has a great mentality and attitude towards recovery, so he will be back as quick as is humanly possible. But we're looking at least a month and possibly longer."

PS. Have you ever heard any pro athlete described as a slow healer? Haha, to hear coaches and managers tell it, every pro athlete that ever lived is a fast healer and ahead of schedule every time they get injured.

Balotelli plays one game with Man City, gets hurt

Chalk it up to the fact that he played in Serie A but I can't believe it took this long for us to mention Mario Balotelli.

The Italian bozo is one of soccer's great headcases and he's already made quite an impact after his transfer from Inter Milan to Manchester City. Or maybe not and he scored a goal in his first game (an exhibition) but also tore his meniscus in the same match and will be out six weeks.

Like most bozos at this level, he's very talented (hence why he's stuck around) but he is kind of a poor man's Craig Bellamy in terms of nuttiness (not that crazy) and skills (good not great).

Balotelli made his long-awaited move to Eastlands from Inter in mid-August but, having made an instant impact with a goal on his debut against FC Timisoara, he sustained an injury in the same match.

A statement on the club's official website read: "Striker Mario Balotelli is to undergo surgery on his injured knee that could rule him out for up to six weeks.

"The Italian's injury is to the lateral meniscus, one of the two most crucial structures in the knee, and medical wisdom is to try and encourage the problem to heal without recourse to an operation.

"It was hoped that the symptoms would settle down but, once Balotelli began to step up his recovery programme this week, it became clear that action would need to be taken."

Balotelli has now flown back to Milan for the operation.

Seeing that disgusting haircut makes me wonder if Cisse is still alive? Last I heard, I think he was playing in Turkey (no joke).

Aston Villa decides to have a manager

Most times when you have a coaching vacancy for a professional sports team, you try to fill it as quickly as possible while also doing your diligence to find the best candidate at the time.

Aston Villa certainly took their sweet time but it looks like they scored big time by bringing Gerard Houllier aboard.

At first the name didn't ring a bell since most recently he was technical director for the French national team (insert joke here) but further down on his resume were winning stints at Lyon and Liverpool.

French Football Federation (FFF) president Fernand Duchaussoy had earlier announced that Houllier had resigned his role as technical director of the French national team to return to full-time management.

"Yes, it's true we're letting him leave for Aston Villa," Duchaussoy told RTL radio. "He's been a friend of mine for a long time, and is someone I admire a lot. It was a personal choice on the part of Gerard Houllier. He wanted a new adventure. It is his main motivation and is a unique opportunity to relive the sensations of the past."

Villa confirmed the appointment shortly afterwards, and Houllier told the club's official website: "I am very happy and proud to join this great and historic club. It was a very difficult decision for me to leave the FFF but I could not turn down the opportunity to manage a club whose approach, both on and off the pitch, I have long admired.

"Aston Villa is one of England's biggest clubs and has an amazing set of fans. This is a tremendous challenge and one I am very much looking forward to taking on."

Chief executive Paul Faulkner added: "Two of the key qualities we identified as being of crucial importance in our search for the new manager were experience of managing in the Premier League and a strategy for building on the existing strengths in our current squad, and Gerard Houllier comfortably satisfies these criteria.

"In fact, he stands out as a football man who understands the ethos of our club and shares our core values. We look forward to working with Gerard and supporting him and we ask our supporters to get behind the new manager and the team as we look to build on the progress we have made over the past four years in all areas of the club."

Houllier, 63, takes charge with immediate effect, and is set to lead his side out for the first time in Monday's Premier League game at Stoke.

His last full-time management role was with Lyon, where he won the Ligue 1 title in 2006 and 2007, and he previously had a six-year spell at Liverpool in which he clinched trophies including the UEFA Cup and FA Cup.

Capello booking his trip out of England in 2012

My extended break allowed me to ponder such deep questions as who do the English national team fans most remind me of (in American sports)? Well I have to say they are a combination of Cubs fans, Cowboys fans and Notre Dame football fans.

And don't misconstrue this since I love the Three Lions but the way they get way too high over a win and similarly way too low over a loss is quite reminiscent of our most bandwagon teams' fans (mentioned above).

That was a long-winded and random introduction to the news that England's coach Fabio Capello confirmed that he'll retire after Euro 2012.

England has looked good in Euro qualifiers this past week: beating Bulgaria 4-0 behind Jermain Defoe's hat trick and Switzerland 3-1. I would have written about those wins but I mean really, are they noteworthy?

Capello's contract ends after the tournament in two years' time, or earlier if England should fail to qualify, by which time he will be 66.

Speculation had been mounting the FA would be forced to end his £6million-a-year deal prematurely after a terrible World Cup but England's flying start to qualifying for Poland-Ukraine 2012 has made Capello comfortable to confirm he will see out his contract and then call it a day.

England's impressive victories over Bulgaria and Switzerland raised the possibility that Capello could consider another World Cup at the England helm to right some of the wrongs of South Africa.

But asked whether he would be finishing up after Euro 2012, he said: "Absolutely, yes. We have to qualify first of course but after that I will be too old. I want to enjoy my life as a pensioner.''

Meanwhile, Capello has hinted that Steven Gerrard could take on the captain's armband permanently. The Liverpool skipper took on the role when Rio Ferdinand, himself John Terry's replacement, suffered an injury before the World Cup which ruled him out of the tournament.

Gerrard has thrived as captain post-South Africa, playing a leading role in his preferred central midfield role. When asked whether Gerrard had done enough to get the job full time, Capello clearly didn't want to upset Ferdinand but he refused to rule anything out.

He said: "Is there another question? For me, the performance of the player is important, not the armband. It is not a priority for me. It is more about the players, the performance, the next game. Another question, please."

Capello was happy to discuss Gerrard's performance in midfield, where the injured Frank Lampard's absence has forced a reshuffle that has brought more balance to England's engine room.

Capello said: "I am playing him like a midfielder and, this season, he has started playing fantastically."

I'm going to take a wild guess and say England qualifies for Euro 2012, only to choke in it.

Argentina's lame-duck coach gets to stay on through the holidays

Welcome back friends. Shimer and I have been taking it easy the last few weeks but it's time to get back in the groove. Some coaching and injury news today; the European Leagues have been on hold the last few weeks with Euro 2012 qualifiers but everything will get rolling again this weekend.

We'll start with the news that Argentina interim coach Sergio Batista (wish he still rocked a beard like that) will stay with the national team through the end of the year.

It's apparently a reward for his good work so far: a 1-0 win over Ireland in his debut and a 4-1 win over Spain on Tuesday.

As we all remember, he replaced Diego Maradona after Argentina's choke job at the 2010 World Cup vs. Germany.

Argentina has games against Japan and two against Brazil remaining in 2010.

Luis Segura, a high-ranking member of the Argentine Football Association, confirmed after Tuesday's victory that Batista will stay on in the job. He said other candidates will be evaluated at year's end.

Others thought to be in the running are Alejandro Sabella of Estudiantes, Miguel Angel Russo of Racing Club and Carlos Bianchi, who is without a club.