David Beckham made his first appearance on the field with the Los Angeles Galaxy on Monday and it was in the team uniform as the squad worked out in preparation for the World Series of Football, which begins Tuesday.
But the newest sensation of MLS did little more than stretch and did not participate in a brief intrasquad scrimmage as he rests a sore left ankle. Beckham is tentatively scheduled to play Saturday against Chelsea FC but that appearance remains in doubt.
"We just want to get him on the field as quickly as possible but we don't want to put him in any danger of re-injuring it. It has responded though, in the last few days," Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop said. "There is always a possibility that he won't play because of his injury but we're never going to force him to play. If he's ready to play, he'll play but we're waiting to see how he responds. We have to make sure we do the right thing by him."
Yallop said his newest star is day-to-day and there is no structural damage but will err on the side of caution. He said Beckham felt the strain while running before making the trip to the United States and then it swelled up on the long flight. He arrived in Los Angeles last Thursday.
In addition to the Galaxy and Chelsea, the World Series features Korea's Suwon Samsung Bluewings and Tigres UANL of Mexico. On Tuesday, the Galaxy will play Tigres with Chelsea facing Samsung and Saturday, Samsung will play Tigres with the Galaxy set to face Chelsea.
Beckham created a stir on Friday during his official welcome to the league and team. On Monday, fans again descended on The Home Depot Center for the open workout.
Despite the fact Beckham was relegated mostly to the role of spectator, the team can feel the elevated excitement.
"The attention we're getting now is opening up eyes for everybody," Yallop said. "I think that is the thing we knew was going to come and I don't think we knew how big it was going to be around the world but that is one of the reasons we wanted to sign him. He has made a huge difference already but the next thing is to get him on the field."
Team captain Landon Donovan agreed.
"There is a lot of buzz going around and we understand that. We're excited about it," Donovan said. "This is now our first chance to play since David has been here. We know now that a lot of people are watching, a lot more than before. While that is pressure it is also a lot of opportunity for us."
Donovan said some of the initial shyness has dissipated for both Beckham and the Galaxy players and that each side is beginning to warm to the other. He also said the team needs to take advantage of having a player of Beckham's caliber on the field.
"It's not necessarily where he comes in and he's the savior and he's going to score five goals a game and we're going to win every game," Donovan said. "We understand that and he understands that. It is a great opportunity for us to get better on the field. We've been much better lately and we feel good about where we're going. We still have to perform."
Yallop also said Beckham has fit in well and has made his job easy by being easy to coach and receptive to direction. At 3-5-4, the Galaxy are fifth in the Western Conference but Yallop feels his club has time to turn it around and make a run at the playoffs.
"If they don't lift their game now and really rally around him once he does start playing and rally around our season, (then a chance is lost)" Yallop said. "These next few games are really important. We can start to gel as a team and really look forward to the rest of the year."
Mike Scarr is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
