Tuesday, August 21, 2007

On the Greatest Game in MLS History (Soccer)

The MLS couldn’t have scripted it any better. New York. Los Angeles. Sixty-six thousand fans. Nine goals. Starring performances from both “Designated Players” and high-profile Americans. A full game out of a fairly healthy looking David Beckham. And a dramatic finish.

First and foremost, Becks looks ready to be the star the MLS needs him to be. His strengths really are perfectly suited to engage the casual fan. Since free kicks are his forte, there is a built-in stoppage of play for announcers to explain what he’s about to do. Otherwise, his long passes from play are roughly equivalent to long bombs in football or outlet passes in basketball, a skill that is easily understood. Most importantly of all, his competitive nature is unmistakable. During Saturday’s game, he was encouraging his teammates. He was trash-talking with opponents. He was yelling at referees. He was ecstatic when his team scored. He was disgusted when his team gave up the winning goal. He refused to come out. If there is one thing American sports fans expect from sports icons, from Lombardi to Jordan, it is a strong, frankly psychotic dedication to winning. And Beckham’s got it.

But against New York, he was foiled by the combined effort of three opposing stars. Juan Pablo Angel, a Columbian player brought in from the English league, scored the first and last goals of the match. The Red Bulls’ second goal came from Clint Mathis, who was a much-hyped American striker at the 2002 World Cup, and the third and fourth from 17-year-old Jozy Altidore, who is going to be our much-hyped striker in 2010. Landon Donovan, our much-hyped player of 2006, also scored for LA.

One reason for the high-scoring nature of the affair is the enforcement of the offside rule. In the European leagues and international play, it often seems that on close calls, the benefit of the doubt goes to the defense. In this match, the offense was getting those calls, which made for an entertaining style of play.

While Beckham certainly brought forward an exciting debut, in the end he walked out with a loss. Eight of thirteen MLS teams make the playoffs, a ratio that would embarrass even the NBA, but still the Galaxy are not sure of a place in it, especially considering that Beckham will have to miss some of the remaining games while on national team duty in Europe. A win would have gone a long way toward ensuring Beckham’s place in the postseason, and thus the MLS’ continued relevance in public consciousness.

OK, I guess it could have been scripted a little better.

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