Yesterday, David Beckham made his long awaited MLS debut in a 1-0 loss to DC United. The drenched crowd of 45,000 people cheered mightily when the 4th Official held up his number as a substitution. My wife hyperventilated when Beckham took off his warm up jersey to put on a game jersey. (To be fair if Victoria Beckham had done the same thing, I might have hyperventilated as well).
Beckham's entry into the game came in teh 70th minute or so, shortly after Kyle Martino received a direct red card (as opposed to two yellows) after a vicious tackle on Luciano Emilio. Inititally, I didn't think the tackle that bad, but the replay showed Martino with studs up hammering Emilio's right ankle. Fortunately, Emilio was not seriously hurt but the replay showed what could have been a season ending ankle injury for the prolific United scorer. Making matters worse of Martino is that he committed his offense right in front of the referee, who had a clear and unobstructed view. Martino rightly deserved to be tossed and he should get a hefty fine from the MLS for the offense as well.
Back to Beckham though. His presences on the field did add some addtional quality to the LA team. Although not overly active in his 20 minutes or so, the few strong plays he made did make a difference. Upon entering and playing in central midfield for the depleted Galaxy side, Beckham started directing traffic and working well with a number of players, including Landon Donovan, Chris Klein and Edson Buddle. There were three balls he played in particular worthy of note, two that would make most highlight reels and one that wouldn't. The first was his free kick from the left side into the box that was headed over the net by Carlos Pavon. As usual Beckhams ability to both bend and dip the ball effectively set up a goal chance with a ball perfectly placed to tempt United goalkeeper Troy Perkins into coming out, but too far away to really do anything.
A few minutes later Beckaham played a spectacular ball from midfield, between United defenders toward the left corner of the penalty box and a streaking Landon Donovan. Perkins left his line, stripped Donovan (who flew in a rather spectacular fasion) just outside of the box. Perkins had the presence of mind to not use his hands and cleared the ball from danger. Had the field not been so wet and the ball skipped so quickly, Perkins would have stayed on his line, Donovan would have collected the ball and made a cross into the box where Pavon and Edson Buddle were moving into position, creating another quality scoring chance. Beckham's play was well struck and an excellent opportunity.
Toward the end of the match though, Beckham made the kind of quality pass that currently distinguishes the upper echelons of European soccer from the MLS. After collecting a short pass near teh middle of the field, Beckham was receiving some light pressure and had the option of passing to a couple of Galaxy players. Rather than simply passing to the feet of Ty Harden or making a pass to space, forcing Harden to move. Too often, MLS players, faced with the situation, would have simply put the ball at Harden's feet, But Beckham forced Harden into movement.
It is not that Harden was being lazy or was tired (though he might have been tired), but top flight European teams keep the ball moving into space and keep the game moving. A pass to Harden's feet would not have caused a reaction among the United defense, but a play into space creates a reaction in the defense and reactions create space, passing lanes and other open space into which teams can attack.
This is the kind of impact that Beckham and other designated players with European and South American experience can bring.
In general, United looked pretty good and got an important win. LA will play the New England Revolution on Sunday, where Beckham may play again in a reserve role. His ankly may still be healing and it was obvious in a couple of spots that his fitness is not up to game time standards yet.
Now a couple of words on ESPN's coverage. I expect a great deal more from Eric Wynalda than we got. As a former national team and MLS player, Wynalda needs to do more to be something of a cheerleader for the League. I know he is paid by ESPN, but that doesn't mean he can't be excited and his comments about how half the crowd was there just to see Beckham, while probably true, could have been used as a springboard for creating a passion for the game in casual observers. Thankfully Tommy Smythe made some comments to that effect, but because Smyth is Scottish and not American, it makes a difference.
Next, can we get rid of the Beckham Cam? Showing a few shots here and there of him warming up is okay, he is news, but did ESPN really need a camera on him during the match as well AND show it in split screen? There was never a Donovan cam, or a Emilio or Moreno cam. Now that Beckham has made his debut, hopefully this feature will go away.
Finally, replays are fine and acceptable as part of match telecasts, but I don't need see graphics of where Beckham puts his shots or crosses or passes. It is just annoying.
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