Why Beckham will be good for the Galaxy

By: Laurie | July 21st, 2007

Did you survive?

Did you survive the whole red carpet thing and the celebrity interview thing and the Beck-cam that did its utmost to pull your attention away from the game, even when he was only lacing up his boots (which, did you know, were made specially for today and emblazoned with “Victoria” and the names of his kids?)

The celebrity part of the night? I couldn’t decide whether to barf or burst into tears.

The pre-Beckham part of the night? Not wonderful, but hopeful. Yes, I am hopeful. 0-1 against a team like Chelsea. Maybe these guys can stand up to the intense media pressure after all.

And the Beckham part?

Okay, first, I’m taking names for a lynch mob for the idiot Sidwell kid from Chelsea who took Beckham out at the ankles. Yo! Doofus! Did you not get the “don’t get physical with Beckham” memo, especially the part about the ankle region? I thought that was a requirement to be playing in this game.

But, assuming Becks survived that tackle, here’s what has me guardedly cheery:

First, my assessment of tonight:

Defense: pretty solid, and from what I can tell a WHOLE bunch better than the previous game. And Abel Xavier is a god. An inconsistent god, yeah, but he was on tonight.
Midfield: coming together at last, but…
Forwards: how can we tell? They never get the ball.

What we’ve really been lacking, up to this point, is a midfielder who can really, seriously, accurately distribute the ball forward. At best we’ve been getting these hopeful long balls to nowhere.

Before Beckham came on the field tonight, I’d given a lot of thought to his free kicks. And his corner kicks. What I hadn’t given much thought to was his ability to pass the ball forward, yes, with accuracy, to the guys in the front. At least until I saw that one long pass up to…oh, I’m not 100% sure, but I think it was ~~Gavin Glinton~~. My bad. It was actually Quavas. (I kept waiting for them to show the replay, but for some reason they never did. Probably because it would be too soccer related and not celebrity-oriented enough.)

That one long ball, delivered perfectly, made me realize that yes, Beckham could be the missing piece. If all of our forwards can live up to their potential, and if everybody else can keep doing what they did tonight…

Yes, with that accurate long ball, Beckham could make a difference.

We can hope. Right?

Some Related Galaxy Posts:

Category: 2007 Games, International Games and Issues

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Jon

I dont beleive Beckham will be good for the L.A. Galaxy. Personally I think he isnt a good player, his fame coming from his looks. I personally think Beckham is only good at PKs which happen usually 1 per game if even. Hes to old to make a decent cross, and cant shoot under pressure. He will be good for the Galaxys income though, being a big name for Americans. People say, that because he played for MAN U and Madrid that he is a super star, yes great teams, but if he is so great, why isnt he still on one of them?
Raw Cool

Beckham, Beckham, Beckham, that was about all you heard during the Chelsea Galxy game. Its funny how the commentaters got all excited when he touched the ball and he wasnt even playing! I hope he didnt injure his ankle any further too!
Laurie

Oh, and yes, I was aware that the long ball is a Beckham trademark. It's just that I'd never really stopped to think before that an accurate long ball has been THE largest missing piece for the Galaxy. Maybe there is method to Alexi's madness after all.
Laurie

Christian!! How you have been missed! (I was fairly certain that you were the Christian I'd offended by dissing Herbalife and I'd driven you away from blogging forever.)

I'll be sure to stop by your blog later on. Once I get over my jealousy that you were actually at the game and not forced to turn your attention away from the game over and over for vapid interviews and Beck-cam shots of his shoes.
Laurie

Andy, JT, etc. I don't necessarily disagree with you about Sidwell. 50/50, no foul, etc. All I'm saying is that there's a difference between accidentally breaking a 2 cent plastic Easter egg and accidentally breaking a Faberge you've been warned not to play with.
Martha

I love that Beckham said he was glad he didn't get too many touches. That's honest for you. And I'm glad ABEL! is playing well for you guys, that's most pleasing.
Andy

Beckham has said 'he saw Sidwell coming' and made the effort to jump out of the way and Beckham also added that it was part and parcel of the game.
JT

I'm with Andy on the Sidwell thing. 50/50 ball, and its tough to control your instincts in that situation, no matter what Jose said beforehand. I think he realized what we was doing about halfway through and thats what caused the clumsiness of it all. if he had gone full speed the whole way there might not have been as much contact.
Christian

Hi again Laurie!

Long time, no blog--new baby at home, seems to require a lot of attention--I'm typing with one hand in the dark. Wow, that sentence doesn't mean what it used to. It's 'cause I'm feeding a baby.

Anyhoo, I was at the game last night, miraculously, and the atmosphere was great. This is going to be a lot of fun. The lads put some heart into it and saved Yallop's job (for now). Xavier was particularly good in the second half. I will try to actually post today with other thoughts (I have many). Keep up the good work here.

Oh, and Robben is a far more brazen diver than Didier. He never played last night, and I'd like to think it's because I verbally assaulted him during warm ups and made him cry in front of the John Terry.
Andy

Dont you worry too much about Beckham being good for you. Worry about the other players being good for him.
That long pass late in the 2nd half, is a Beckham trademark and you will see many more of those once he gets settled into the real action.

Barn door right - couldn't agree more. I expected 3,4,5 goals last night (purely based on the Tigres score) But thats Chelsea for you and I should know!
Sidwell - dont be too harsh on him. Was just doing his job - even I thought OUCH!
Jay

It was a pre-season game :- about fitness. OK, Chelsea would have wanted to win but they would have been more interested in bedding in their new players and getting some minutes under the belt. A fully fit Chelsea team with all players available, have no doubt, could take apart most teams. With or without Beckham.
Laurie

"But “a team like Chelsea” that’s been training for 10 days or whatever isn’t exactly a team like the real Chelsea, so don’t get TOO encouraged. (: "

Believe me, this has not escaped my notice. But still. When you're used to seeing your team curl up and die under pressure, the fact that they gave up only one goal is heartening.

(It also helped that Chelsea couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with their shots. There is that.)
Martha

I'm glad they looked good and didn't crumble, that's a good sign. But "a team like Chelsea" that's been training for 10 days or whatever isn't exactly a team like the real Chelsea, so don't get TOO encouraged. (: (That said, I've no doubt that your boys could spank the crap out of RBNY right now, so I shouldn't talk at all, probably.)