18/07/2005
Beckham injured as Real Madrid score friendly victory
England captain David Beckham picked up a
hamstring injury as Real Madrid concluded the U.S. leg of their
six-match tour with a comfortable 2-0 win over the Los Angeles Galaxy at
a sold-out Home Depot Center on Monday.
"I had two sore hamstrings after the game in Chicago (on Saturday) and
thought it was just stiffness but maybe it is a little bit more,"
Beckham told Reuters after the game.
"We travel to Thailand tonight and we will see how it is. If it is torn
then I will probably go home," he added.
Beckham pulled up shortly after taking a free-kick in the 58th minute
and was replaced by Portuguese midfielder Luis Figo.
Real Madrid had taken the lead in the sixth minute when a pass from
Zinedine Zidane found an unmarked Michael Owen on the edge of the six
yard box and the England striker calmly slotted the ball past Galaxy
goalkeeper Kevin Hartman.
A series of substitutions in the second half, which began with the
departure of Beckham and Zidane around the hour mark, disrupted the flow
of the game and turned the match into a more even contest.
However, Madrid striker Roberto Soldado sealed victory for the
nine-times European champions with 15 minutes remaining, firing a low
shot past Hartman from the edge of the penalty area.
On Saturday, Madrid defeated Mexico's Chivas Guadalajara 3-1 in Chicago
and now head off to Asia for the remaining four matches of the tour in
Beijing, Bangkok and Tokyo.