Are Any Other Galaxy Fans Feeling Depressed by the Beckham Hype?

By: Laurie | July 16th, 2007

Yes, as a relatively new Galaxy fan, I do feel a little hypocritical writing this. But I feel what I feel.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not a lifelong MLS fan. (For those who aren’t longtime followers of this blog, I’m a recovering Eurosnob learning this year to love MLS.) And I can only imagine what you longtime Galaxy fans are feeling. But for myself, I am more than a bit depressed over the Beckham hype and hoopla from the past few days (and, yes, even from the entire season.)

It’s not that I don’t like Beckham. I do. (Posh? Not so much. But that’s irrelevant.) I find him both talented and genuine. What I’m troubled by is the almost universal opinion that the Galaxy and MLS were nothing before Becks arrived to save them, and the belief that he will, talismanically, save them from the dire fate which otherwise awaited. Whatever that was.

This isn’t true. Yes, perhaps the Galaxy weren’t having their best season before his arrival. And okay, yeah, maybe that’s an understatement. But how many of their problems this year have been a direct result of the whole “getting ready for Becks” thing? From trying to fit everybody else in under the salary cap to the obsessive trading in order to find just the perfect players to wrap around Beckham… What would the team have been like, I wonder, if it had been allowed to grow and change like a normal team? And would we have been so willing to trade off our future (e.g. Sturgis and Findley) for older players who can potentially play to Beckham’s strengths for maybe a season or two?

I wonder if we would still be 3-5-4 if we hadn’t been frantically making changes to build and create not the LA Galaxy but “Beckham’s team”?

It’s funny, but I have really come to love this team. And, by extension, MLS. The style is different from what I was accustomed to, but it’s not necessarily worse, as so many would like us to believe. Each player has something unique to offer. And to imply otherwise, as the vast majority of media reports are doing right now, is insulting. Beckham will not save MLS, because MLS wasn’t really lost to begin with. It was a league which has been following a cautious developmental path toward solvency in a society that is only just starting to value what it has to offer.

Beckham will sell jerseys. Beckham will bring in money. Beckham will provide giltz and glamor and ESPN’s Beck-cam. But will Beckham help the team, and the league, to reach their full potential?

The jury’s still out.

Some Related Galaxy Posts:

« Let’s Caption This Becks “W” Photo, Shall We? | Home | It’s Time for that Fun and Exciting World Series of ~~Soccer~~ Football »

Dave

Follow the URL to thecouriermail.com.au to see a full gallery with pictures of Beckham at his first training session with the Galaxy.
Jeff Bull

That's a really bang-up piece, Laurie. And damn right, too.
Todd Pounds

From what I saw over the past year with Real Madrid, I would expect Beckham to be a leader and a workhorse! He leads through example on the field with his work ethic, in spite of the halo of hype that constantly surrounds him. I expect him to make the Galaxy much better!