Don't Hate Me Because I'm Beautiful
Beckham to LA Galaxy: An Analysis
David Beckham: watched by millions, hated by millions more. It is a classic case of people hating what’s popular and overexposed. It’s part media frenzy, and part media frenzy of Beckham’s own making. Really, it’s a shame that so many hate him as in every interview I’ve ever seen with Beckham he’s been classy, soft spoken and charming. Whether at Manchester United, Real Madrid or with England, he always stops to sign things for the fans, especially kids. He’s run soccer camps for children on both sides of the Atlantic. Yet this man is hated by football fans and with zeal I’ve rarely seen. Those who don’t care for football tune in to his every move. Those who have never watched football before are snapping up MLS tickets just to see him. It is a setup for disappointment, and football fans who hate Beckham (100% by my experience, minus yours truly) will breathe a collective “See! I told you so!”
But in the end, it will be rubbish. Football fans who hate Beckham and are sick of seeing him everywhere should know full well what kind of player he is, and what to expect from him. Those who tune in to see what the fuss is about won’t understand why he’s not scoring hundreds of goals. After all, he’s the world famous David Beckham! Perhaps they can be excused, as they won’t know what to expect.
So, if Beckham isn’t a massive goal scorer, then what’s the big deal about him? Is it just because he is so good looking that even staunchly heterosexual men will easily acknowledge the fact without hesitation? Or is there something more? Well, it is the latter: there is much more, but it takes a comprehension of the game of football to understand. That is something that most North Americans just do not have.
There is a reason why football is called “The Beautiful Game”. It is a difficult sport to master in practice, especially at the highest levels. In order to be a player who is chosen to play for the biggest and best clubs in the world, you must have a serious proficiency in making a football do what you want. You must be able to stop a ball dead from high velocity with your foot while in stride. You must be able to anticipate the movements of others. You must be able to run for 45 minutes at a time with little drop in speed or energy. You must make decisions quickly as team mates are marked in tight spaces. And you must place the ball into those tight spaces, often while running at full speed. This last point is where David Beckham truly shines. Even those die hard footie fans who hate Beckham know this to be true. But the hatred runs so deep that admitting the fact is impossible for them.
David Beckham is not a striker. He is a midfielder. It is his job to get the ball to those who are proficient in scoring, and to give them the ball in such a way as that they can turn nothing into something in a split second. Becks is very nearly the best in the world at doing exactly that. This is not to say that he cannot score goals; he scored a Beckham classic in his first start for the Galaxy. But he has only ever managed a high of 12 goals in a season, and that was an anomaly compared to his usual strike rate. Many of those goals were scored on free kicks, a task that one may safely rate Beckham as the best in the world. Most seasons at Manchester United Beckham would score 6 to 9 goals per season. At Real Madrid he scored only 4, 3, and 3 in 3 seasons. But football is not like hockey. Leading scorers may only bag 20 in a season.
Those that despise him for whatever reason will no doubt point to his red card in the 2002 World Cup, or his disastrous penalty kick in Euro 2004. But neither of these admittedly sour incidents invalidates the man’s talents or achievements. If David Beckham is so over-rated then why did Real Madrid want him back so badly? Why were they publicly stating that they’d found a loophole in Beckham’s LA contract that would allow him to return? Why is he still a starter for the English national side? The fact is that he is still a very good football player, and if he had wanted, he could still be playing for one of the biggest clubs on the planet. No amount of glorious chances missed by Crouch in the 2006 World Cup will change that. The England team had the service, they just couldn’t put it away. That service came from Beckham, who, of course, unfairly took the blame.
David Beckham is not advertised correctly here. Clearly North Americans will be expecting bagfuls of goals. They won’t get them. But Beckham will no doubt improve the LA Galaxy team immensely. It will be a team of considerably less talent than England’s national side, but David Beckham’s ability at free kicks, and incredible ability to pass the ball precisely while both he and his target are in full motion will allow the Galaxy to score more goals. I would think that right now the happiest footballer on the planet is US national team star Landon Donovan, the captain of LA Galaxy. Donovan has scored 28 times in 54 appearances for LA. Beckham will only inflate those numbers. Luckily for Beckham, the MLS records not only goals, but assists. Perhaps through that statistic alone, Beckham may be vindicated.
David Beckham: watched by millions, hated by millions more. It is a classic case of people hating what’s popular and overexposed. It’s part media frenzy, and part media frenzy of Beckham’s own making. Really, it’s a shame that so many hate him as in every interview I’ve ever seen with Beckham he’s been classy, soft spoken and charming. Whether at Manchester United, Real Madrid or with England, he always stops to sign things for the fans, especially kids. He’s run soccer camps for children on both sides of the Atlantic. Yet this man is hated by football fans and with zeal I’ve rarely seen. Those who don’t care for football tune in to his every move. Those who have never watched football before are snapping up MLS tickets just to see him. It is a setup for disappointment, and football fans who hate Beckham (100% by my experience, minus yours truly) will breathe a collective “See! I told you so!”
But in the end, it will be rubbish. Football fans who hate Beckham and are sick of seeing him everywhere should know full well what kind of player he is, and what to expect from him. Those who tune in to see what the fuss is about won’t understand why he’s not scoring hundreds of goals. After all, he’s the world famous David Beckham! Perhaps they can be excused, as they won’t know what to expect.
So, if Beckham isn’t a massive goal scorer, then what’s the big deal about him? Is it just because he is so good looking that even staunchly heterosexual men will easily acknowledge the fact without hesitation? Or is there something more? Well, it is the latter: there is much more, but it takes a comprehension of the game of football to understand. That is something that most North Americans just do not have.
There is a reason why football is called “The Beautiful Game”. It is a difficult sport to master in practice, especially at the highest levels. In order to be a player who is chosen to play for the biggest and best clubs in the world, you must have a serious proficiency in making a football do what you want. You must be able to stop a ball dead from high velocity with your foot while in stride. You must be able to anticipate the movements of others. You must be able to run for 45 minutes at a time with little drop in speed or energy. You must make decisions quickly as team mates are marked in tight spaces. And you must place the ball into those tight spaces, often while running at full speed. This last point is where David Beckham truly shines. Even those die hard footie fans who hate Beckham know this to be true. But the hatred runs so deep that admitting the fact is impossible for them.
David Beckham is not a striker. He is a midfielder. It is his job to get the ball to those who are proficient in scoring, and to give them the ball in such a way as that they can turn nothing into something in a split second. Becks is very nearly the best in the world at doing exactly that. This is not to say that he cannot score goals; he scored a Beckham classic in his first start for the Galaxy. But he has only ever managed a high of 12 goals in a season, and that was an anomaly compared to his usual strike rate. Many of those goals were scored on free kicks, a task that one may safely rate Beckham as the best in the world. Most seasons at Manchester United Beckham would score 6 to 9 goals per season. At Real Madrid he scored only 4, 3, and 3 in 3 seasons. But football is not like hockey. Leading scorers may only bag 20 in a season.
Those that despise him for whatever reason will no doubt point to his red card in the 2002 World Cup, or his disastrous penalty kick in Euro 2004. But neither of these admittedly sour incidents invalidates the man’s talents or achievements. If David Beckham is so over-rated then why did Real Madrid want him back so badly? Why were they publicly stating that they’d found a loophole in Beckham’s LA contract that would allow him to return? Why is he still a starter for the English national side? The fact is that he is still a very good football player, and if he had wanted, he could still be playing for one of the biggest clubs on the planet. No amount of glorious chances missed by Crouch in the 2006 World Cup will change that. The England team had the service, they just couldn’t put it away. That service came from Beckham, who, of course, unfairly took the blame.
David Beckham is not advertised correctly here. Clearly North Americans will be expecting bagfuls of goals. They won’t get them. But Beckham will no doubt improve the LA Galaxy team immensely. It will be a team of considerably less talent than England’s national side, but David Beckham’s ability at free kicks, and incredible ability to pass the ball precisely while both he and his target are in full motion will allow the Galaxy to score more goals. I would think that right now the happiest footballer on the planet is US national team star Landon Donovan, the captain of LA Galaxy. Donovan has scored 28 times in 54 appearances for LA. Beckham will only inflate those numbers. Luckily for Beckham, the MLS records not only goals, but assists. Perhaps through that statistic alone, Beckham may be vindicated.
posted by Deathsdoorstep at
9:47 a.m.
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