not true at all. beckham was dropped from capello's madrid squad after the deal to join mls was announced. he played his way back in to the team based on his hard work and was instrumental in real's run to winning la liga that season. he was only dropped from mcclaren's squad, because steve is a muppet who decided stamping his authority on the team was more important than actually picking the players who were beneficial to the team. to be honest i take everything he says at face value with one exception: he always said his family comes first, but playing in milan and leaving his family especially those young boys at home for months and months at a time shows football is more important than his family.
Traditional view of someone who regurlarly watches a a league where the football is atrocious. You watch a match between an american side an just about any other country an you can see the majority of american footballers simply kick the ball up the pitch one way with ******** all accuracy. How can you glorify donovan and then slam Beckham, its only jealousy, donovan wanted to leave the team and got turned down because although high standard in the U.S he is fairly rubbish. Beckham planned to return to the club after a loan period but payed out of his own pocket to play at another club where they play "real football" so that he can play for his nation (if you are an idiot i will point out that this is the biggest honour a footballer can ever have) and he needs to do this to keep up to scratch, i mean american league footy aint really testing him. Its not that daves a dick but more that you cannot face the fact that without him Galaxy is nothing. BTW beckham aint at the end of his career look at sheringham and er all prime players even when they left. "or maybe its because beckham is a dick" or maybe its because you are a dick, donovan only coming back to your sorry team because he is too crap too get into a proper football league. Peace bitch
From someone who supports a team in the SPL: Beyond hilarious. The balance of the post is not worth a response and I'd ask folks here to leave the wee man be.
Number of Championships the Galaxy have won without Beckham - 2 Number of Championships the Galaxy have won with Beckham - 0 Number of times the Galaxy have finished in last place without Beckham - 0 Number of times the Galaxy have finished in last place with Beckham - 1 Care to restate that with some accuracy?
Sorry, I was already working on my reply when you posted this. Feel free to delete my post if you think this troll will linger because of it.
Re: Alexi Lalas: Beckham Will Be Booed By LA Galaxy Fans do we have to keep pointing out that he was called up to the england team repeatedly during his time with the galaxy and capello commented favorably on beckham's play and fitness level during his time here? you'd think that england was paying his salary. by the way, this isn't about england, this isn't about patriotism, this is about beckham's own glory, his own ego, his own quest for the record books, for more fame.
we've never finished in last place. got close last season, but thanks to our better head-to-head record against san jose they just pipped us for last place.
My bad...forgot about head to head and was just remembering our overall record. Thanks for the reminder...WE ROCK!! (Well a little more than San Jose at least.)
Listen up, n00bs. If you just signed up for BigSoccer, please read the Terms of Service and try to decide if you're here to insult the rest of us. If you are, then your lack of respect will be rewarded with a red card courtesy of me, the most craven, power-hungry moderator on the LA Galaxy boards. I'll pre-admit to you that redding n00bs is one of my most favorite things to do, gives me more pleasure than internet porn, and perversely boosts my low self-esteem. Make my day! Ha Ha Ha! Cheers, Topper
What are the Galaxy faithful going to say when Landon Donovan demands a summer transfer out of the MLS? But this time to a more realistic team like a Wigan Athletic or Getafe? I'm certain it's coming. David Beckham will be back if for no other reason that he's almost 34 and the 2010 World Cup will be his swan song of top flight football. Definitely not the case with Donovan. This is not knock against either of them and any hate put towards Beckham (or eventually Donovan) is really short sighted and unfounded. I'd do the same thing if I were in their position and so would you. It is, however, a knock against the MLS and it's failed Designated Player rule which makes it impossible for teams with DP's (especially two) to field competitive teams.
Jones71, your question is the subject of this entire thread. i think most on here have expressed that they will wish Donovan well and hope the best for him when he likely takes off mid-season, for all the reasons expressed herein. there are many reasons expressed in this thread as to why so many people view the situations between the 2 players as very different and the contempt for beckham well-founded. did you read the thread from the beginning?
You all may be shocked when Becks returns and the stands are full for away matches. And these fans are going to be written-off as "casual soccer fans" who only started following the MLS when Beckham got here. True soccer fans know something special when they see it. That's why the Cosmos drew fans, that's why the Champions Tour drew fans, and that's why the stands are packed when the Mexican league teams come to play here. Beckham is why ESPN turned up the soccer coverage. So we'll all go see Beckham when he's on the East Coast. We'll appreciate one of the top players in the world and you all can continue to worship at the altar of Chris Klein and Dema Kovalenko.
And the G-d of Soccer spake. I take it this particular god rests a great deal more than once in a 7 day span...and drinks during the daytime? Oops, have to get back to sacrifice and offering for Chris Klein and Kovalenko. Please carry on with the wisdom from on high. Hilarious stuff.
Well, I can give you 5,000,000 reasons why it was his fault, or the fault of his agent. I was proud to be a Galaxy fan Before Beckham. I was prepared to like him despite all the bullcr*p that came with him. But you don't make a commitment and walk away. It's the club, the fans--not AEG--that he made a commitment to. We moved to WA state in 2007 and were commuting to LA for the Galaxy games, but this past season was too much. We're starting over with the Sounders, who--we firmly hope--are oriented to the fans. AEG, for all its success in other areas, never had a clue about the fans. We will still acknowledge Landon for his contributions to the Galaxy and the USMNT. But if Becks bothers to show up here, we'll turn our backs.
Re: Alexi Lalas: Beckham Will Be Booed By LA Galaxy Fans Amen. And there's no question he'll be booed worse than Steve Sampson.
I feel I have to address the opening post and hope that those in Europe might read this and understand the G fans reactions to all this in general... I don't think anybody is upset that David Beckham wants a better chance at a place in the England team. I think people would generally understand that. I don't think there would be anything like the frustration at Beckham had he been gracious in explaining his decision. Everyone gets his reasons, anyone who knows the game could understand his wishes, but the fact is that he didn't simply just say "Hey guys, I'm not getting any younger and it looks like I might actually have a shot at a place in the world cup after all. I would like to transfer to AC Milan to maximise that chance." No. He basically stated unnecessarily that the MLS was a poor league (thanks for the heads-up there David....but we prefer the term 'relatively new league which is still developing'), stated excessively that he wanted to leave (every few days is a bit harsh) and to insult the fans and the club further, displays a disgustingly indiscrete desperation to get out of here at any cost. Regardless of the wishes of the fans who have given him more vocal support than I've ever witnessed for an individual player in entire life, he has done literally everything in his power to leave the team, regardless of the potential impact on the upcoming season. And then today, when it was reported that he will probably be booed, he decides to 'smooth things over' by throwing in the comment "Real football people will turn around and say 'he's passionate about playing for his country and knows what he needs to do to make that happen'." REAL football people David? REAL FOOTBALL PEOPLE????? I've been a Man U fan my whole life and as such have contributed PLENTY to your career! I have backed you EVERY SINGLE TIME anybody has said you're too old, have nothing to offer, are way past your prime, were overrated during your prime, etc etc. Well I say that a REAL football person who has ever been passionate about his or her team would fully understand why Galaxy fans are offended and frustrated by the way in which Mr Beckham has handled this. Donovan on the other hand said he wanted to leave (and frankly it would be appropriate for his career to move to Europe at this stage) and left it at that. He's back in LA because he team decided that they need him right now and if he had left, he'd be wished the best because he has given his all for the team. Anyone who thinks that Beckham sinply wanting to leave is what makes the majority of people unhappy in this has missed the point somewhat. I'll shut up now.
Here it is: "The former England captain is embarking on an ambitious, almost non-stop schedule on two continents believing it will satisfy the demands of three coaches, two separate groups of administrators, commercial bosses and sponsors and his family." Let's see, now, who's missing from this lineup?
If you could split him down the middle he could play for two teams at once. Then he'd have it all, and England could have the half that plays for AC Milan. My point is, sometimes you have to choose. This Solomon act is ridiculous. He'll be a zombie by the time he gets here, either that, or injured.
It's called Celebrity. ESPN is after Ratings. Beckham is a damn good soccer player, I've enjoyed watching him many times, but there is nothing about him that draws "True soccer fans". He is first and foremost a famous person. His quality as a player is secondary, especially in the US.