MLS Week 22 Review: The Beckham Disaster

By: Daryl | September 2nd, 2007

Beckham disaster So the Beckham experiment is basically a disaster, for this season at least. The knee ligament sprain sustained against Pachuca will keep Goldenballs out for 4-6 weeks, which means he could maybe maybe feature in one of Galaxy’s final regular season games, maybe not. But there almost definitely won’t be a post-season for Galaxy, barring some sort of miracle. The injury was sort of unlucky, but when an unfit player over the age of 30 plays too many games, we shouldn’t be all that shocked when he sprains ligaments. So who’s to blame for this shambles? More or less everybody.

Alexi Lalas has been running his mouth and hyping expectation (which he’s good at) while trading Galaxy players like marbles (which he’s not good at.) David Beckham has played when he shouldn’t (the Chelsea game, the England v Germany game, the Chivas game, the Pachuca game) with the bizarre decision to play two games in two days on two continents apparently all down to him. Frank Yallop has failed to stand up and say “no,” and put the wellbeing of his Galaxy team before the wellbeing of the Beckham experiment, though I’m sure he’s been under plenty of unfair pressure to do so. But still.

But media and fans are also to blame, because no one was patient with the injured player. We should have just accepted that he was injured and let him rest until he was better, but even some fans who should know better (like myself) were just desparate to see Beckham on the field in MLS.

But most to blame for making this whole thing a disaster as opposed to just a disappointment is everyone involved with MLS and Galaxy who decided to make Beckham such a focal point. The decision to shift all Galaxy’s fixtures to the backend of the season, the decision to sell Beckham tickets in packs featuring other non-Beckham games, the decision to launch a new kit and logo to rebrand the club for the Goldenballs era all seems wrong, because it made the player more important than the club, more important than the league. This was basically a gamble on Beckham’s fitness and success, and it’s a gamble that’s failed. So now everyone should do exactly what they should have in the first place. Relax. Don’t rush the poor guy back after 4 weeks. In fact forget about Beckham in MLS for 2007, let him get fit and come back stronger in 2008.

Besides there’s a whole league out there. So on with The Offside MLS Awards…

Team of the Week: Real Salt Lake
They were supposed to be rubbish, but RSL played two games this week and took all six points, beating Kansas City 3-1 and then Galaxy 2-1. There’s just enough time for a late season playoff charge, and I’d love to see Eddie Pope make the post-season with RSL in his final MLS year.

Most Depressing Circumstances for a DP Debut: Denilson
It’s not the Brazilian’s fault, but FC Dallas decided to introduce their new star player when they were 4-0 down to DC United. He didn’t do a lot, and picked up a yellow card for dissent. But don’t lose hope. He may be one footed, but Denilson has got a great big bag of luverlee tricks, and it’s only a matter of time before we start seeing them. At least he won’t be underestimating the level of competition after this debut.

Only DP Having a Good Week: Juan Pablo Angel
The original DP and still the best. Angel scored the only goal as New York got back to winning ways, seeing of Cuauhtemoc Blanco’s Chicago Fire 1-0.

Best NHL Impression: Scott Sealy
Kansas City’s Scott Sealy started a skirmish when he checked Houston Dynamo’s Ryan Cochrane hard into the advertising boards during their 1-1 draw. Cards were shown but no one was hurt.

Best Thing for MLS Right Now: The play-off race
Only (!) eight teams make the MLS playoffs, and Columbus and Colorado went into today’s game tied for eighth spot with 26 points each. They finished the day tied for eighth with 27 points each after a 1-1 draw, but good to know we’re getting towards the bit of the season where games start to mean something.

Most dramatic transfer: Danny Szetela
The Crew’s Danny Szetela was going to Roma, then Newcastle, then Brescia and probably a few other places before finally settling on a two-year contract with La Liga’s Racing Santander just before the European transfer window slammed shut. The Spanish club only paid $150,000 for the youngster because his contract was up at the end of this season. Looks like a smart move by Szetela. The low transfer fee probably attracted clubs like Roma and Newcastle who would have been happy to gamble such a small sum of money on some American kid, just in case he came good. Don’t know this for sure, but seems like Szetela waited until he found a European club that would give him some playing time.