Donovan, Beckham: From Rivals to BFFs

SEATTLE -- Landon Donovan's MLS goal of the year was remarkable on two levels. First, the curling volley was an incredible strike, with a beyond-the-post bend reminiscent of Roberto Carlos' famous free kick against France 12 years ago. Second, it was David Beckham who was the first to jump into Donovan's arms.

The feud and reconciliation between the league's two most recognizable players has been the story of the 2009 season, and there can be little question that the Los Angeles Galaxy would not be here for Sunday's MLS Cup final had the pair failed to resolve the differences that became public over the summer. Beckham's genuine excitement over Donovan's goal, and the club's run to the final, are clear indications that the two are on the same page. On Friday, FanHouse had the opportunity to ask them how they did it.

The backstory is well known at this point. The lost captaincy, the lost games, the behind-the-scenes machinations that resulted in the disastrous appointment of Ruud Gullit as coach, Beckham's last-to-arrive, first-to-leave habits, the loan to AC Milan and Donovan's public venting in Grant Wahl's book. It was enough to dissolve most locker rooms, and it gave coach Bruce Arena plenty to do during the offseason. But in the end it was up to two very successful athletes to swallow their pride a bit, get over perceived hurts and come together for the sake of the club. The results have been plain, and now the Galaxy is 90 minutes from history.

On Friday, Donovan and Beckham met with the media in Seattle, and FanHouse asked each player what they observed in the other that helped repair their relationship and bring the fractured Galaxy together:

DONOVAN: You guys don't see what goes on every day. You guys see what happens when the lights come on on Saturday nights. I think from that standpoint, you see how helpful David has been.

But what we see every day in the locker room, on the road when we travel, has been tremendous. When your most talented player or players are doing that on your team, then everyone else follows, and his work rate....

The other thing you don't see is this guy has been hurt of sick for probably the last seven games. [Beckham did not practice for a week following the Western Conference final because of a bone bruise in his right foot and was coughing throughout Friday's news conference.] You don't read about it and you don't hear it, but he gets on with it and he plays. That's helped our team a lot.

BECKHAM: I think what you see is what you get with Landon. He's an exceptional talent. You know he deserves the MVP.

But like Landon says, same about me. He's worked great throughout the week. He's a player that players respect. He's a player that players look at and look up to. I think that's important when you've got a captain like that and when you've got an MVP player in your team, you look to them for advice. You look to them for how they play on the field and how they conduct themselves, whether it's in the locker room, whether it's on the field or whether it's just out for dinner. He's a perfect example for that.

We've come together this season and it's not just about what me and Landon have done. We're here in the MLS Cup final because of the unity that we've got in the team. We've got good players throughout our team. We've got rookie of the year from last year, Sean Franklin, and rookie of the year this year with Omar [Gonzalez]. So we've got good players throughout our team that have performed well all the way through the team.

And also, with a manager like Bruce Arena, it's a good mix. It's worked well. But I can't speak any higher than I can for Landon, because he's been exceptional this season.


So yes, Beckham does know the names of his teammates, even the ones who are 10 years younger and earn 1 percent (literally) of what he makes. The improvement in the Galaxy, who were 5-3-9 when he returned to the team, made the transition easier as well.

"I saw a lot of the games while I was in Milan," Beckham said. "It was interesting to watch, because the results might not have been there, but I could see that there was a huge improvement to the other seasons that I played. That's why I was excited to come back. I knew there had been an improvement with the players that had been brought in, whether they were young players or whether they were experienced players.....I was excited to come back. Soon as I came back, my first training session, I could see straightaway there was an improvement. It was something I was excited about and I was proved right."

Donovan said the team "played well in parts" prior to Beckham's return, but that it "didn't have enough quality to make real plays going forward." He said, "David obviously brings that." But Beckham brought more, according to the American star -- the willingness to put past hurt behind him.

When asked what helped the Galaxy rise from a last-place team to the cusp of a championship, Donovan said a key was "David's reaction to everything that's gone on."

"Life is about choices," Donovan said. "He could have come in and chosen to be something different than he has been. He chose to be a man and [to] want this team to be successful. Without him, we're not where we are. We can cut it any way we want, but that's the reality of it and he's been tremendous."