The essence of the Sierra Mist MLS All-Star game is about MLS players proving to the world - and to themselves - that they can compete with anybody. As far as the 2007 edition is concerned, it's mission accomplished.
For the MLS All-Stars, there was plenty to play for in Thursday night's encounter with Celtic FC at Dick's Sporting Goods Park.
With the largest-ever crowd at the brand new stadium on hand, a national television audience, and a special guest appearance by one David Beckham, there was no lack of motivation, and that doesn't even include the pride and respect factors.
"We've come a long way in 11 years," said All-Star and New England Revolution head coach Steve Nicol. "We've really reached a point where we're maybe on the threshold of really taking the extra step. I think it's great that with the likes of Juan (Pablo Angel) and Beckham and some of these other guys coming in. It's going to be a great example."
That example was on display Thursday night with Angel scoring the game-winning goal and earning MVP honors in the process. Fellow Colombian Juan Toja added the second goal before the halftime break and though Celtic applied more pressure in the second stanza, the All-Stars never looked as though they were in danger of losing the game.
"I think we got out there with the right attitude. We spoke in the dressing room before the game that there's not such a thing as a friendly game anymore," said Angel after the match. "We wanted to get out there and do it right. I think that's full credit to everyone that played tonight. We went out there, we played well, I think were the better team on the night and we fully deserved to win."
The All-Stars came out hard, throwing numbers forward in the first half to keep Celtic pinned in their own end for most of the early stages.
Eddie Johnson earned a penalty just before the half-hour mark after taking a bump in the area. The Kansas City Wizards striker stepped up to take the shot himself, but his effort was parried away by Arur Boruc.
"He didn't move. Usually the 'keeper will move first to give you a way that they're guessing. He didn't move and it kind of froze me up a little bit," said Johnson. "But I thought I hit it nice. Even our goalkeeper coach said I hit it nice and he made a good save. At the end of the day, that's soccer. We managed to get two goals before the half and we got away with a 'W' tonight."
Johnson's blunder was quickly forgotten when Houston Dynamo midfielder Dwayne De Rosario fed Angel into the area, the former Aston Villa man coolly rounding Boruc and depositing the ball in the empty net.
"We had the penalty; unfortunately Eddie missed it," said Nicol. "But Juan's goal was a fantastic finish. One on one with the goalie, keeps calm, goes around him and puts it in the net. Superb finish."
Toja doubled the advantage shortly before the break, joining his countryman on the score sheet.
"I've always followed Juan Pablo since I was very small and now to be able to be a teammate of his at the All-Star Game makes me very happy," Toja said. "And the fact that both of us scored makes us both very happy and it makes us very proud that we're able to leave the name of our country in very high standards."
It was a tougher game for the All-Stars in the second half as Celtic committed numbers forward in an effort to close the gap. Nicol's side also lost a bit of its verve as the manager made numerous substitutions in order to let the full side see the field.
"The one thing I certainly wanted to do was be fair to everybody. I definitely wanted to get everybody on the field at some stage," Nicol said. "I think it was important at the end that Eddie Pope and Cobi (Jones) got on. They've given great service to this league and they deserved to be playing tonight. I would have done that whatever the score was."
In the end, the All-Stars got all the scoring they would need in the first half and held on quite comfortably for the victory, a fourth in as many tries for an MLS All-Star side against a major international opponent. And perhaps more important than the result itself, the league took yet another step forward in terms of earning more respect.
That's something that Nicol believes will only keep increasing as the years go by.
"I think what you'll see is a lot of the young American players are going to be better professionals," he said, citing the addition of top quality players such as Angel and Beckham as a major influence. "(The young Americans) are going to be better equipped to take on better teams and better players because of the influx of good players, so that can only be good for our league and our game."
Jonathan Nierman is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
