Foudy on Becks: It's not his fault
Julie Foudy hears that Kobe Bryant will be at Thursday's Galaxy home opener at the Home Depot Center. But she could be wrong.
"I'm not much on celebrity stuff that much," the ESPN soccer analyst admitted.
On the sport of kickball -- didn't Kobe get kicked out of a recent Lakers' game for kicking the ball at the ref? -- Foudy's opinion bank is filled up and ready for a withdrawl.
Got a chance to grill her for some snappy opinons about where your David Beckham (who made it to The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Tuesday) and your Los Angeles Galaxy are coming and going, based on the fact the team dropped a 4-0 decision in Colorado for its opener, and plans to show up for the home opener Thursday at Home Depot Center to play ... let's check that ... the Earthquakes of San Jose, coached by the guy who used to babysit the lads down here.
Q: Does whatever's left of Beckhamania remain a positive for a team just trying to make the playoffs, or is he smothering the experience for the real football fan when they're just trying to enjoy a game on the pitch?
(OK, I didn't use "football" or "pitch," but ... hey, this is a shot of Beckham sitting at Staples Center to watch the Lakers play the Wizards on Sunday ... the least Kobe could do is come to his game Thursday ...)
Foudy: "I think he's still a positive. He obviously reaches a different crowd that the typical player, and drawing more people is always a good thing. I know there's a lot of attention given to him, and it's somewhat of a circus, but that's good for the MLS. They need that attention, for the non-soccer viewer and the young kids, especially. Maybe they'll watch a game and, instead of Beckham, get interested in watching someone else. That's a positive."
Q: What are the Galaxy fans supposed to expect this season?
Foudy: "Rightfully so, the expectations are great, but losing Carlos Ruiz right away doesn't help. He's such a goal-scorer. I'm not sure the roster can meet the fans' expectations. It didn't seem to me as if they had much of a midfield presense (in the opening loss at Denver), no creative attacking to get Beckham and Landon (Donovan) the ball in that 4-3-3 system. There are some glaring gaps on that team they recognize, but with the (salary) cap issues, I'm not sure how they'll fill those. That's the great debate. You see how well teams like Houston and others can fill their rosters without huge stars and still win.
"I don't see any of this as David's fault. He's not to blame. You've got to be able to build a team around him. Any coach on any other team would love the opportunity to have Beckham. But now it's up to the staff to put a team on the field that can produce with him. Don't blame David so much. It's early and, yeah, they're not showing a lot right now, but they've got a whole season. There's no need for panic."
Q: What do you remember about that Galaxy game a year ago when Beckham made his debut?
Foudy: My first thought was: Beckham needs more security. Oh, my goodness, he's going to get trampled. Listening to the players afterward, they say they weren't prepared for that at all. This year, I think at least some of them are better prepared. At least they know coming in, it won't be as crazy. But the expectations are different. Last year was just nuts.
Q: Does that mean no Beck-Cam on Thursday's telecast?
Foudy: I don't know. I stay out of those decisions.
ESPN2 televises the Galaxy-Earthquakes game at 7:30 p.m. (JP Dellacamera, John Harkes and Foudy on the sidelines), after the New England-Chicago game (with Glenn Davis, Tommy Smyth and Pedro Gomez) at 5 p.m. Foudy is on site at Home Depot Center for the studio show, hosted back in Bristol, Conn., with Rob Stone, that begins the doubleheader.
And you? You'll be trying to decide between watching this game, and an episode of "The Office" from last season.