Is Beckham set to quit LA Galaxy?

Is David Beckham preparing his escape route from US soccer? With American fans giving him a hostile reception and some of Europe's finest club's lining up to offer him a berth for the forthcoming season, the 34-year-old could be forgiven for wondering why he's bothering plying his trade on the west coast.

The England midfielder endured a rough ride last night from Los Angeles Galaxy fans, as predicted on The First Post, when he made his first home appearance for the MLS side since his return from playing in Europe for AC Milan. By coincidence, the game was a friendly against Milan. A section of the crowd at the Home Depot Center stadium had brought placards reading 'Go Home Fraud' and '23: Repent' (23 is his shirt number) and booed Beckham every time he touched the ball.

At half time it all appeared to be too much for the former Manchester United man, as he set off in the direction of the most vocal fans and attempted to hurdle an advertising hoarding to confront them. Beckham made a 'come on' gesture at the crowd, believed to be members of the hardcore Galaxy fan group the 'LA Riot Squad section'. One man took Beckham at his gesture, and tried to run at the player before he was clobbered by security, who also escorted the player from the pitch.

Asked after the game whether he had intended to “do a Cantona” - a reference to his former Man Utd team-mate Eric Cantona, who assaulted an abusive fan at Crystal Palace in 1994 - Beckham smiled and said: "Of course not". When he was eventually substituted, the midfielder was jeered and applauded in equal measure, having helped set up both the Galaxy goals in a creditable 2-2 draw.

Becks' erstwhile AC Milan teammates were far happier to see him than the home fans, with Ronaldinho and Matthieu Flamini sharing hugs with the - for now - Galaxy player. And Leonardo, the recently installed AC Milan manager, revealed on the club's official website that Becks had visited his former team as they trained before the game, a move the Brazilian described as a "really nice gesture".

Leonardo appeared to be holding the door to the San Siro wide open for Beckham's return when he said: "David is without doubt a very intelligent player and I don't think there is anything strange to say that he could come back into my plans, because he can fit into any system."

With similar interest being shown by Chelsea and Spurs, the prospect of Beckham seeing out the rest of the season - which ends in December - in front of a rabble of rowdy American ingrates appears very low. ·