FanHouse Oguchi Onyewu

In a very unsurprising development, AC Milan vice president Adriano Galliani declared that the club is "95 percent" finished on bringing back David Beckham to the club in January on loan. Galliani went as far as to call it a "done deal."

Unlike last year when there was a lot of alarm and acrimony when Beckham announced his intentions to play somewhere else during the break in the MLS season, this time there doesn't seem to be too much problem that he'll be away from the Los Angeles Galaxy for a period of time after the 2009 season wraps in November.

Aside from the fact that they're both a) human beings, b) American international soccer players of African descent and c) from the greater Washington, D.C. area, there aren't too many similarities between Freddy Adu and Oguchi Onyewu, saying nothing of the pair's nearly one-foot height and seven-year age discrepancy.

Adu, as we all recall, entered MLS in 2004 with fanfare worthy of a Michael Bay special effects blockbuster and was supposed to set the league afire with his amazing skill and footwork -- all at 14 years of age. Since his arrival the pint-sized midfielder has played for two MLS clubs, made a much ballyhooed transfer to Portuguese giants Benfica and now at 20 years old finds himself loaned out for the second time in three years.

Meanwhile the same year Adu attempted to burst onto the MLS scene, Onyewu quietly moved from French club Metz to Belgian power Standard Liege, where he blossomed into a hulking central defender with a pair of Jupiler League crowns under his belt. Most American fans probably didn't even know of the alliterative defender's existence until his famous stare-down of Mexican forward Jared Borgetti in the U.S.'s 2-0 win over El Tri in Columbus, Ohio, which booked a place in the 2006 World Cup.

It would have been an almost unbelievable ending--the humble yet powerful hometown hero rising into the air to tie a game scheduled so fans could worship at the altar of Chelsea and AC Milan's big foreign stars.

But it was not to be. Oguchi Onyewu's 92nd-minute header went just wide of the right post, and the English club escaped with a 2-1 win in Friday night's World Football Challenge exhibition at Baltimore's sold out M&T Bank Stadium. About an hour afterward, the U.S. national team's starting center back and new Milan signee spoke with a small group of journalists in the humid tunnels outside the locker rooms, discussing his move to Serie A, his return to play in the state where he grew up and the dramatic goal that almost was.

Did the U.S.'s impressive run in the Confederations Cup mean anything? How will the Gooch fare with AC Milan? What's up with Beckham and the Galaxy? And does he miss being scruffy? Taking a break from participating in the Kicking and Screening film festival, U.S. soccer great Alexi Lalas talked to us about these questions and plenty more. Check out the full interview below.

FANHOUSE: You were the first American to play in Serie A, so what are your thoughts on Oguchi Onyewu signing with AC Milan this week?

LALAS: I couldn't be happier for him. I'm disappointed it took this long (for another player), but I'm happy. He's a great player and a great player to have in this particular situation. He's going to a great club and should learn so much on and off the field and be able to take that to the national team program.

Maybe the most under-reported aspect of the U.S. national team's run to the Confederations Cup final last month was that, given the spotlight, a couple of American players probably earned themselves some nice European paydays. Nowhere was this more evident than starting central defender Oguchi Onyewu, especially after his epic performance in the U.S.'s 2-0 win over-then FIFA No. 1 Spain in the tournament semifinals.

All of the post-Confederations Cup scuttlebutt surrounding Onyewu, who was out of contract at Belgian champ Standard Liege, were moves to lower-tier Premier League clubs and some far-flung Turkish teams. So Tuesday's announcement that the 6-foot-4 Maryland native signed with Italian giants AC Milan on a three-year contract comes as a pleasant surprise for U.S. fans since it's a far cry from a pre-Confederations Cup link to Birmingham City.

MILAN (AP) - United States defender Oguchi Onyewu has joined AC Milan on a three-year contract the club said Tuesday, becoming the first American to join Serie A in more than 10 years.

Milan acquired Onyewu from Standard Liege in Belgium after some outstanding performances in the United States' run to the Confederations Cup final. The U.S. lost 3-2 to Brazil in the final.

Financial details of the transfer were not disclosed.

For most American soccer fans, Oguchi Onyewu is remembered for his owning performance of Mexico's Jared Borgetti in a 2006 World Cup qualifier, rather than his unfortunate clearance in Germany in June 2006 which set up a Tomas Rosicky wondergoal.

Tuesday, the rugged U.S. defender might leave an impact on the world of soccer that extends far beyond the field itself. Onyewu filed a complaint in a Belgian court, alleging an opponent during a Belgian top division match lobbed racial slurs at him.