David Beckham's MLS Debut
You can watch ESPN Highlights from the game as well as David Beckham's post-match interview above. Updated - I've added another clip to this of comments from the ESPN commentators and Ben Olsen, DC United captain who swapped shirts with Becks.
Pictures of David, at the game tonight, are in the gallery. David made his MLS debut, in the 72nd minute of play amidst torrential rain, with DC United leading 1-0 and LA Galaxy down to 10 men with Kyle Martino having been red carded. He received a rapturous reception from the 45,000 strong crowd. It was not an easy set of circumstances for David Beckham to debut under, he has had little practice time with his new team-mates due to injury and no real game time in 8 weeks but his passing ability immediately made a difference. Although DC United held on for a 1-0 win. You can read the official match report here. Reuters also have a good overview of the night online here.
David Beckham said of the rain after the game "It was just the biggest raindrops I've ever seen," he also said "It's great to be out there because it's not nice to disappoint people, it's not nice to disappoint people that paid a lot of money to come and see the game... I was thankful to actually get on the pitch. It was a good night, but also a bad night because we ended up losing the game." He mentioned the pressuresurrounding him saying, "Obviously, there's been a certain amount of pressure because everyone is talking about how I've come to MLS and not played yet... but I don't feel pressure in that sense. I feel pressure in myself to get fit and to get back playing again." Now he has had his MLS debut I hope that it will relieve some of the pressure that Becks has been under. You can read more comments from David Beckham's post-match press conference online here. Also you can vote for Becks as man of the match on the LA Galaxy site he is currently winning by a huge margin with 61% of the vote.
At the end of the match David Beckham exchanged shirt with DC United player, Ben Olsen which was a nice moment because Olsen has spoken out in support of Becks during the week and said after the match, "I give him a lot of credit for playing because I know he's not 100 percent... he knew a lot of people were here to watch him and he gritted it out and played."
Also there is an interview with Becks filmed when he was in Toronto on Foxsport for anyone who missed it. You can see Part 1: Beckham Believes and Part 2: Raising MLS? online here. Thanks to Notorious for the heads up!
posted by tanique33 at 4:23 PM
22 Comments:
Oh god!! what's he doing? its too early for him to go in.
4:48 PM
heheh I'm watching it at the moment and it looks like he is! The last 36 mins of the game, you see him stretching and getting ready.
-Phuong
4:53 PM
Oops sorry! I had a retarded moment and wrote it incorrectly LOL.
It seems like after halftime he'll be playing.
-Phuong
4:58 PM
He came through his 20 minutes real well so I'm happy :) Obviously not the result he would have wanted but he seemed relieved and happy with how his ankle had stood up when he spoke to ESPN after the game :)
Thanks for doing the photos Tanique I'll be back later after my second exam
6:08 PM
Glad that's over and he said the ankle felt good, hopefully they wont be any bad effects from playing and it continues to improve.
The team was poor again, had signs of life at the end, but no one could finish. I think he'll have a positive effect on the team soon.
6:08 PM
you're very welcome, and good luck. i'm glad he made it through ok, on his ankle, despite my feelings on him playing.
it's always a special thing, to see the reaction he gets. the game was certainly nothing to write home about, because the galaxy just didn't play well. that is me being kind. he certainly has his work cut out for him.
the commentary was interesting. i doubt i'll fully enjoy becks in a game until his ankle is all healed.
6:22 PM
Can someone please tell me why does he put bandage or something around his finger, where his ring should be?
Thank you
6:38 PM
on la galaxy website, david is leading the poll for man of the match with 63% of the votes. pretty good for just playing a little over twenty minutes. although with the way the rest of the team played and the mistakes they made, i think it makes sense he would get it lol
9:23 PM
Yippee - Becks got to play and showed no illeffects :)
I missed most of the match till around the 60th minute because I didn't hear the alarm clock - thankfully though I didn't miss Becks MLS debut.
When he came on - it imediatley changed their approach, more pressing and closing down and creating more chances.
Glad you're back Becks :)
Have a nice weekend everyone and thanks for the pics Anna.
Ben
12:11 AM
He did well during the minutes he played. It's really nice of him to play some minutes mainly because people wanted to see him, but I think it's better to play when he's completely fit.
Just hope this injury is over soon.
With all the expectation to see him...
1:07 AM
I'm glad it went ok and hopefully it won't set him back. it' sinteresting Yallop said it was Beckham's decision but Becks says it was the Manager's decision... hope everything is fine with him he looked unhappy but I think that was just because they lost and the Galaxy played very badly :-(
3:11 AM
thanks anna for the vids, and notorious for the heads up.
while it's admirable to not want to disappoint fans, it certainly shouldn't be the reason to play when you're still shaky. luckily, nothing happened on the field. i suppose we'll know if running on it, did anything more to the ankle.
if he is determined to play despite being injured, all i can do is wish him a very speedy recovery and keep my fingers crossed he doesn't get hurt. clearly, the team has no control over it. lol. that still makes me laugh, it's so sad.
5:13 AM
he was the best player!! even coming back from injury. I'm glad in a way that his mls debut is done it's a lot of pressure i think
6:09 AM
Ben, Tanique33 did the pictures so it's her that you mean to thanks. You have a nice weekend too :)
6:24 AM
to anonymous, most married athletes put a tape around their ring finger when playing (its a kind of a tribute to their wives), because I think they are not allowed to have jewelry in their fingers and hands as it may be dangerous for themselves and other players. (this rule also apply to American Football) During the world cup, there are clips that show referees checking the players hands before they go out into the pitch
Marie
8:44 AM
I for one am glad that the players agree --- Beckham's own team and his opponents, that he is not 100%, and subtly telling the management that he should not have played.
Marie
8:52 AM
We are happy for the heat demonstrated from the fans, this is important and even if have lost, for David it is beautiful to see and to feel the heat of the fans. You are the our Champion! Ciao Loredana, Samuele, Gabriel
2:18 PM
Thanks Marie, I didn't know that about jewelry.
I have influenza maybe because I kept some silly hours because I was cramming for mid-terms. Updates will be less frequent sorry until I'm better. Have a nice weekend everyone
5:51 PM
Get well soon Anna! Glad the lad has the mls debut out of the way but can't help but feel bad about the way Galaxy played it's a big ask to expect him to turn the teams fortunes round
8:56 PM
Thanks Marie for the jewelry explanation. :-)
And Anna, all my best wishes for you. Hope you get better soon.
All your work is great. I spent more than one month without internet connection and because of your work and this site I could be updated about everything.
So, thanks again for that.
Hope you have a nice weekend and get better soon. :-)
12:57 AM
Get well soon Ana, Hope you feel better, plenty of rest now, and lots of fluids. I remember those times cramming for mid-terms---it sure does take a toll on the body.
Marie
2:08 AM
Thanks Syd, Siniestro and Marie - it's just such a shame to feel like I have a hangover and I never even partied lol :)
8:06 AM
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