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Counterattack: Can Galaxy Deal With Beckham Distraction?
David Beckham brings with him a load of experience and a lethal set-piece ability, but also will bring plenty of distractions. Can the Galaxy deal with them? Goal.com's Luis Bueno and Zac Lee Rigg debate.
Jul 23, 2009 2:48:58 AM
Question: Will David Beckham be a distraction for the Los Angeles Galaxy during the remainder of the 2009 MLS season?
Luis Bueno: Even before he arrived with the LA Galaxy, David Beckham proved that he will be as much of a distraction to this year's team as he was to the 2007 squad. That team handled his impending arrival as poorly as possible and this year's situation will also be quite difficult to manage. The problem in '07 was that the players didn't do well to deal with the media, the glare and the spotlight, but this year's team won't know how to deal with Beckham himself. In 2007, Beckham may have wanted to be here but his commitment is not here this time around and it could affect his play on the field.
Zac Lee Rigg: On the contrary, Beckham has given the team a couple month break to stop, rearrange itself, find an identity, and give his presence another go, this time with hindsight in assistance. The players, staff, and owners know what they're getting: an extremely talented celebrity who may or may not show up for any given game. Like Freddie Ljungberg's status at Seattle Sounders FC, Beckham isn't essential to the team's success because a spine is already there, but anything he can pitch in is an added bonus.
Bueno: True, the Galaxy were already playoff contenders without Beckham and with him it seems the offense will pick up and opposing defense must respect his ability to send in crosses from the right flank and from the back. However, in a perfect world the Galaxy players would only have to deal with adjusting to Beckham on the field. Beckham off the field is a different story, and the "Beckham Experiment" book gave quite a view of how the Galaxy is off the field. That may be in the past but Beckham has not been around much during the time Landon Donovan called him a bad teammate to now, so the negative feelings Donovan and teammates felt about Beckham still exist.
Rigg: Donovan and Beckham are big boys. They know that they need to put on a happy front, but, more importantly, brush any personal sentiment they have aside and get down to business. Lord knows I don't like everyone I work with, but I still do my job (just kidding).
Things are different this time around. The core of the team is already there, under the leadership of Donovan, and it has shown that it's ready to play. No longer will guys be looking to Beckham in the rough patches. Now he's free to flit in and out of form and in and out of training as he goes about collecting his millions thanks to those scrumptious abs. The rest of the team will be able to stay focused on what should be the main goal: winning. I think Bruce Arena has instilled the mentality in the team that they can pull it off.
Bueno: I think Beckham can probably stay focused on what the main goal should be, but I'm not sure many of the other guys can. It's one thing to handle the pressure when you play for big European clubs, but when you've spent a bulk or all of your career in MLS, it's a shock when there are suddenly hordes of television, radio, print and internet reporters asking questions about David Beckham. Only the soccer media cared about the Galaxy before Beckham arrived, and, now that he's here, players will have to deal with ditzy entertainment reporters who know nothing about soccer, local television stations who want to know anything and everything about Beckham and, worst of all, the foreign press who are hoping to send some tabloid-like stuff back across the pond. Distractions can sink and undermine even the strongest teams.
Rigg: This is why I think Beckham's extended loan could come back to help the Galaxy. The players and staff are already in winning mode, focused only on making the playoffs. They're in that groove. Now that the Beckham Distraction is here, they might notice it, but they can continue in the groove they already have in place.
Counterattack runs every Thursday on Goal.com
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the game in the Goal.com blog
Luis Bueno: Even before he arrived with the LA Galaxy, David Beckham proved that he will be as much of a distraction to this year's team as he was to the 2007 squad. That team handled his impending arrival as poorly as possible and this year's situation will also be quite difficult to manage. The problem in '07 was that the players didn't do well to deal with the media, the glare and the spotlight, but this year's team won't know how to deal with Beckham himself. In 2007, Beckham may have wanted to be here but his commitment is not here this time around and it could affect his play on the field.
Zac Lee Rigg: On the contrary, Beckham has given the team a couple month break to stop, rearrange itself, find an identity, and give his presence another go, this time with hindsight in assistance. The players, staff, and owners know what they're getting: an extremely talented celebrity who may or may not show up for any given game. Like Freddie Ljungberg's status at Seattle Sounders FC, Beckham isn't essential to the team's success because a spine is already there, but anything he can pitch in is an added bonus.
Bueno: True, the Galaxy were already playoff contenders without Beckham and with him it seems the offense will pick up and opposing defense must respect his ability to send in crosses from the right flank and from the back. However, in a perfect world the Galaxy players would only have to deal with adjusting to Beckham on the field. Beckham off the field is a different story, and the "Beckham Experiment" book gave quite a view of how the Galaxy is off the field. That may be in the past but Beckham has not been around much during the time Landon Donovan called him a bad teammate to now, so the negative feelings Donovan and teammates felt about Beckham still exist.
Rigg: Donovan and Beckham are big boys. They know that they need to put on a happy front, but, more importantly, brush any personal sentiment they have aside and get down to business. Lord knows I don't like everyone I work with, but I still do my job (just kidding).
Things are different this time around. The core of the team is already there, under the leadership of Donovan, and it has shown that it's ready to play. No longer will guys be looking to Beckham in the rough patches. Now he's free to flit in and out of form and in and out of training as he goes about collecting his millions thanks to those scrumptious abs. The rest of the team will be able to stay focused on what should be the main goal: winning. I think Bruce Arena has instilled the mentality in the team that they can pull it off.
Bueno: I think Beckham can probably stay focused on what the main goal should be, but I'm not sure many of the other guys can. It's one thing to handle the pressure when you play for big European clubs, but when you've spent a bulk or all of your career in MLS, it's a shock when there are suddenly hordes of television, radio, print and internet reporters asking questions about David Beckham. Only the soccer media cared about the Galaxy before Beckham arrived, and, now that he's here, players will have to deal with ditzy entertainment reporters who know nothing about soccer, local television stations who want to know anything and everything about Beckham and, worst of all, the foreign press who are hoping to send some tabloid-like stuff back across the pond. Distractions can sink and undermine even the strongest teams.
Rigg: This is why I think Beckham's extended loan could come back to help the Galaxy. The players and staff are already in winning mode, focused only on making the playoffs. They're in that groove. Now that the Beckham Distraction is here, they might notice it, but they can continue in the groove they already have in place.
Counterattack runs every Thursday on Goal.com
Get a behind-the-scenes look at the game in the Goal.com blog
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