Galaxy mix well with returning Beckham
Club sees no adverse effects from inclusion of Beckham in midfield
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The above qualifier is necessary since the win came against the worst team record-wise in MLS. But the Galaxy's play was nonetheless impressive. They scored on Alecko Eskandarian's screamer less than three minutes into the match and never really looked back.
"When you score early it's always important," said Los Angeles 'keeper Donovan Ricketts, who returned from Gold Cup duty with the Jamaican national team. "It settles you down so you can play free-flowing football and let the other team chase the game."
Despite the Galaxy's start-to-finish dominance, Ricketts was forced into a pair of saves late in the first half, and he stopped Red Bulls striker Juan Pablo Angel's second penalty kick of the game in the 90th minute to seal the two-goal win.
After conceding the opener early, the Red Bulls pressed forward and Galaxy captain Landon Donovan made it 2-0 with a wicked full volley of a feed from Eddie Lewis in the 31st.
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With more gaps appearing in the New York half of the field, a wide-open Lewis made it 3-0 with yet another volley on the stroke of halftime, with Donovan playing setup man this time with a cross from the right side.
"We had three unbelievable strikes in the first half," said midfielder Stefani Miglioranzi afterward. "Apart from that, we played a really good game, were real solid in defense. Not until the very end of the game did we lapse a bit."
Beckham, meanwhile, had a relatively quiet game before being replaced with debutant Chris Birchall, the longtime Trinidad and Tobago international, in the 70th minute.
"I thought David was good," said Galaxy coach Bruce Arena. "He's got a great attitude, he's fit right in with the group, brought a healthy spirit."
The game appeared all but over by the time Beckham was substituted for, but things got interesting in the final minutes when Angel was awarded two spot kicks in quick succession after rookie defender Omar Gonzalez was called for a pair of handballs.
Angel converted the first, but luckily for the Galaxy, Ricketts was able to save the second and seal the points.
"His first kick was so perfect I just said, 'might as well wait until he kicks it'. So I just waited and obviously I went the right way," Ricketts said.
The result extended LA's winning streak to four games, and there is no sign that Beckham will be anything but a positive impact on the team going forward.
"I think he certainly brings confidence to the team," said Arena.
Gonzalez agrees. "I think that we've hit a point where we are all playing better together and just have this kind of chemistry that's hard to beat right now," he said. "We just need to keep it going."
Doug McIntyre is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
