Beckham perfect for city that never sleeps
NEW YORK -- The constant flashes from the newspaper and magazine photographers was enough to upset the television cameramen Friday and they not so politely asked their print colleagues to cut it out.
That brought a smile from David Beckham, who knew right away that his afternoon news conference in Manhattan was taking place in a city that he admires for its inhabitants’ willingness to speak their minds.
“I think what’s great about New York -- and you don’t get it in many cities in the world -- is that there’s a lot of positives, there’s a lot of energy, and if someone doesn’t like you they’ll come up to your face and say, ‘I don’t like you,’ ” Beckham said.
“It’s a very energetic and honest city.”
Tonight, Beckham’s Galaxy plays the New York Red Bulls in an important match for both Major League Soccer teams, but especially so for Los Angeles, which needs to win two-thirds of its remaining 15 games to stand a realistic chance of making the MLS playoffs.
The encounter is taking place in neighboring New Jersey, at Giants Stadium, but that geographic fact did nothing to stop Beckham from heaping praise on his “favorite” city.
“New York is one of the cities I’ve always loved coming to on vacation,” he said at a swank midtown hostelry where the red carpet was laid down for his arrival.
“My son is called Brooklyn. When we found out we were going to have our first baby, we were in Brooklyn, so that’s the reason behind his name.”
It was not in Brooklyn but in Harlem that Beckham spent part of his day Friday, helping Harlem Youth Soccer and FC Harlem raise awareness of the need for inner-city soccer fields. Along with Galaxy defender Ty Harden and Red Bulls forwards Juan Pablo Angel and Jozy Altidore, Beckham played a pickup game with some local youngsters, his competitiveness coming through when he refused to stop until his team had at least tied the score.
“It’s actually been one of the best days since I arrived in America,” Beckham said. “One of my passions is working with kids and seeing kids having fun. . . . In Harlem today, some of the kids had ability and some of them didn’t, but they were out there enjoying themselves playing soccer.
“At the end of the day . . . kids are our future, and if you give them a chance to go and enjoy themselves, you’ll find some of the greatest players in the world, some of the kids with the most ability, will come out of places like Harlem where they haven’t got the money.
“It’s because the kids are hungry. They’re hungry to win and get a better life.
“Being there today was really rewarding for myself.”
Also on Friday, Beckham was named to England’s 28-man squad for its friendly game against Germany in London on Wednesday, although, as Beckham pointed out, “I’m not sure any game against Germany at Wembley is a friendly.”
Beckham will fly to London on Sunday, probably make his 97th appearance for England on Wednesday night, fly back to Los Angeles on Thursday morning and try to play at least part of the Galaxy’s game against Chivas USA at the Home Depot Center on Thursday night.
“I haven’t done that since I was probably 8 or 9 years old,” Beckham said, “when we used to play games on Saturdays and Sundays.”
Being on the road a great deal is now a fact of Beckham’s new life.
“I’ve adapted pretty well to the traveling so far,” he said. “It does get tiring, of course, but if you look after yourself on and off the pitch then you can cope with anything.”
And when the destination is New York?
“Just being in the city, there’s a great vibe from the moment you touch down to the moment you leave,” Beckham said.
GALAXY TONIGHT
at New York, 4:30 PDT, FSC, FSE
Site -- Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, N.J.
Radio -- 1700, 830 (Spanish).
Records -- Galaxy 3-7-5; New York 9-7-3.
Record vs. New York -- 1-0.
Update -- With 10 goals and three assists in 13 games, New York’s Juan Pablo Angel ranks third in MLS in scoring. Fellow forward Jozy Altidore has five goals and four assists. The Galaxy beat the Red Bulls, 3-1, in Carson in May.
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