Tottenham Hotspur and Queens Park Rangers head the list of suitors from the English Premier League. Either London club would potentially be a good destination for him.

Beckham trained with Spurs last season and was on the verge of a stint on-loan at his former junior club before a last-minute hitch. The north London side's fluent style and superstar cast would definitely appeal, not to mention his warm relationship with manager Harry Redknapp.

The downside possibly would be not getting enough game time in a squad overflowing with creative midfielders. Great Britain coach Stuart Pearce has made it clear that he will select only those who are playing regularly.

The advantage of QPR is that Beckham should be a regular starter, despite murmurs this week from manager Neil Warnock that the veteran might just be a squad player at Loftus Road.

If a fit Beckham turns up at Shepherds Bush, you can bet your last 'tenner' that he'll start. One wonders if Warnock's comments were cooked up so the recently promoted side wouldn't look too eager in their pursuit.

QPR's new owner, Tony Fernandes, has also been talking up the possibility of signing Beckham in recent weeks, as he gets ready to spend big in the January transfer window. The Malaysian knows how powerful an image of one of the world's most famous sportsmen on some of his Air Asia fleet could be.

Having cut his teeth at the biggest club in the world from Manchester, Beckham might turn his nose up at playing for the far less fashionable Londoners. But if he takes stock of an intriguing chapter from more than three decades ago at nearby Fulham, maybe he would change his mind.

A quirk of fate meant that three decorated internationals - George Best, Rodney Marsh and Bobby Moore - played in the same Fulham team in England's second division in the 1976-77 season.

All were in their 30s and approaching the twilight of their careers. And like Beckham, they had come from the United States, where they had been earning big money in the old North American Soccer League. And they would return to America, post-Fulham.

The attractive style they created together at Craven Cottage not only brought smiles to the fans, but to their own faces. At a so-called small club, the pressure was off and the trio could freely express themselves.

'It's probably the most enjoyable game that I've ever played in my life,' a YouTube clip shows Marsh saying after scoring twice in Fulham's 4-1 win over Hereford in September 1976.

The cash-conscious Cottagers haven't made a bid for Beckham. But QPR might be a good fit, especially if Fernandes signs the big-name striker that he is said to be targeting.

We saw how Beckham quickly formed a good partnership with Ireland captain Robbie Keane as the pair set up Landon Donovan's winning goal for LA Galaxy in last weekend's 1-0 victory over Houston Dynamo in the MLS Cup final.

It would make little sense for Beckham to extend his contract in Los Angeles after his up-and-down in the MLS. If he walks away now, he leaves as a winner and his well-documented, earlier problems will be largely forgotten over time.

There is no doubt that PSG would be a more challenging and high profile assignment, but with that comes the 'circus' element that his young family could do without.

Presumably, the Beckhams see their long-term future in Britain, rather than in France or the US. Chasing a gold medal at the London Olympics is the one burning ambition for next year.

So if he is looking at pure soccer reasons - getting lots of games under his belt to push for selection in a familiar environment then heading back to his old home town has many plus points with less than six months from the end of the January transfer window to the lighting of the torch at London's XXXth Olympiad.

The big question is whether commercial interests and the attraction of the unknown over-ride common sense for David Robert Joseph Beckham?

4

The number of goals Englishman David Beckham has scored for the Los Angeles Galaxy in two seasons playing in the MLS