ESPN Jen Chang Blog

So here we go with the latest installment of the Beckham watch. At least this time around, the suspense over whether or not David Beckham actually will play is over; tonight, it's simply a question of how long he plays and how effective he is.

While we sit here twiddling our thumbs, I'm going to give a callout to one of my readers, a Brian Lomax, who -- along with his friend Danny -- has started an American soccer blog called "Stateside Footy" for the fans. You can check it out here.

In the meantime, I'm still waiting for the old video stream to start up. The match was due to start already, but nothing is happening on the technical end. Needless to say, if the stream doesn't work, I won't be doing a play-by-play.

OK, we're off -- Beckham is in the starting lineup for the first time for the Galaxy.

Play-by-play

• Clearly Beckham's ankle still is troubling him. He wasn't able to be as active as he normally is, and other than his rush-of-blood-to-the-head moment, he mostly was content to avoid tackles. Having said that, he still was head and shoulders above the rest of the players on the field and provided the two killer blows (goal and an assist) to D.C. Any questions about his ability to dominate in MLS can be put to rest, assuming his ankle continues to heal. The questions now are: 1) Will we see him Saturday at Giants Stadium? And 2) Will the England friendly against Germany on Aug. 22 set him back even more?

94 mins -- Shot of Beckham looking pretty content on the bench. Carroll tries another long-range shot for D.C., but this one sails harmlessly over. The crowd rise to their feet as the whistle blows. Game over.

90 mins -- They've announced there will be 4 minutes of stoppage time, but at this rate, it looks like the Galaxy are headed for a date with Pachuca on Aug. 29.

84 mins -- Justin Moose now is on for D.C., but it's probably too little, too late at this point.

83 mins -- A decent ball from Vagenas (no, you didn't misread that) to Glinton, who tries a quick left-footed snapshot that is weak and well wide.

79 mins -- The pace of the game has slowed; D.C. seems to have lost steam.

74 mins -- Another nice run by Moreno forces a corner, but that too comes to nothing. Edson Buddle is replaced by Gavin Glinton. That move changes the entire complexion of this game now.

73 mins -- Brian Carroll hits a long-range stinger that Cannon pushes over the bar. You get the feeling that D.C. will score at any moment.

71 mins -- Moreno with a nice stepover move to beat Chris Klein (are you watching, Mr. Buddle?), but unfortunately his cross is too high and hard.

69 mins -- Cobi Jones is coming on for Kyle Martino.

67 mins -- Great cross from Fred, narrowly missed by Emilio, and Olsen hashes his attempted volley. Good chance there for D.C., but wasted. Cobi Jones is warming up.

64 mins -- Great ball from Chris Klein sets Donovan free down the right. Donovan squares for Martino, who only has to touch the ball into a gaping net, but he just misses. Any remaining doubts about Beckham's commitment to this team were erased by the way he leapt up from the bench, ice bags and all, when Martino almost scored.

63 mins -- The D.C. free kick comes to nothing. In the meantime, Beckham is getting heavy ice treatment on the sidelines.

62 mins -- Ty Harden hacks down Emilio inches outside the penalty box. Meanwhile, Beckham's night is over -- he gets a standing ovation for his efforts tonight.

61 mins -- Long-range effort by Ben Olsen, but he hits it straight at Cannon, who gathers with ease.

59 mins -- Moreno tries to lead a D.C. break but is dispossessed, and as Kyle Martino breaks with the ball, he is flattened by Namoff. Vagenas is ready to come in for the Galaxy.

58 mins -- Beckham forces a save from Perkins. Had the free kick been 5 yards closer in, he probably would have nailed it again.

57 mins -- Beckham with another great ball to set Donovan free. Donovan's cross is poor, but the Galaxy have yet another free kick in Beckham range. Can he do it again?

53 mins -- Emilio clean through, is denied again by Joe Cannon. And right after, the camera cuts to a shot of an attractive blonde in the stands, followed by a shot of a pretty brunette. Now they cut to a shot of another attractive woman. OK, WE GET IT. Hot women come to soccer games to watch Beckham.

52 mins -- Peter Vagenas is warming up on the sidelines? Is he coming in for Beckham?

51 mins -- I might have spoken too soon. Emilio almost pulls one back for D.C., but Joe Cannon makes a fantastic save. L.A.'s three best players are carrying the Galaxy right now.

47 mins -- GOAL. Galaxy 2-0. Beckham again is the key, this time threading a pass through Josh Gros to Landon Donovan for a breakaway. Donovan clean through buries it past poor Troy Perkins. This game is just about over. After all, the Galaxy is not really the type of team that will concede, say, five goals in a SuperLiga game.

The second half is about to commence, and it looks like D.C. is bringing on Christian Gomez. This'll be interesting. Beckham historically has had a hard time being civil to Argentine players on the field, all stemming from a harmless little love tap he once gave Diego Simeone ...

We're halfway through halftime and no further gratuitous shots of Posh? Someone's asleep on the job. In other meandering and meaningless notes, I just got handed close-ups of Beckham's goal celebration. He has his tongue hanging out, just like his idol MJ. Someone needs to get the two of them together for some superstar-on-superstar bonding. Either that, or have him meet Kobe and learn how to demand a trade out of L.A.

Halftime -- The Galaxy walk off the field looking like a different team. Maybe they're not actually as bad as we suspected -- it seems their grand plan all along was to mail in the MLS season and win the one tournament that actually matters -- that's right, SuperLiga.

43 mins -- Buddle on the right side outside the D.C. box. He engages in the hopeless stationary-stepover-move-to-nowhere routine that Eddie Johnson has perfected over in K.C. McTavish thinks about hacking him down to give Beckham another shot at glory, but apparently changes his mind at the last minute and actually makes a clean tackle to clear.

42 mins -- Martino simulates a dive in the D.C. box in an attempt to earn a PK. Needless to say, the ref sees right through it.

41 mins -- Beckham definitely is not as active as we're used to seeing him. Having said that, after that goal, I doubt anyone cares.

37 mins -- So apparently Alan Gordon isn't in the game -- I didn't even notice. It seems he makes the same impact when he's not playing as when he is playing. Gotta admire that consistency.

33 mins -- Donovan sets up Martino on the edge of the box, and Martino, feeling inspired by Beckham's presence, tries his own version of an outside curler. I don't think you need me to tell you how that works out.

31 mins -- D.C. gives a perfect example of how not to take a free kick in a dangerous area but still somehow almost scores from the ensuing comedy ricochet as the Galaxy fail to clear convincingly.

30 mins -- Moreno earns D.C. a dangerous free kick right outside the Galaxy area. Can D.C. answer in kind?

27 mins -- So how dumb does Devon McTavish feel? I mean, committing a stupid foul 25 yards out and giving the Galaxy a prime scoring opportunity for a player who has made his name scoring free kicks from precisely that spot. I guess McTavish didn't read the scouting report or somehow has managed to avoid watching TV in the past 10 years -- either that, or he secretly is on 19 Entertainment's payroll.

26 mins -- GOAL. Galaxy 1-0. Beckham drills it home from 25 yards. D.C. goalkeeper Troy Perkins doesn't even move as he watches the ball curl into his top right corner. I have to hand it to Beckham, he has made a habit of delivering the dramatic over the course of his career. Cue second gratuitous shot of Posh, and she still doesn't seem that excited. Then again, she's seen him do that, like what, 5,000 times in his career?

25 mins -- The Galaxy has a free kick in "Beckham special" range. Will this be a goal? Bet on it.

23 mins -- First gratuitous shot of Posh in the stands; she looks completely bored. Where's Cheryl Tweedy-Cole when you need her?

22 mins -- Carlos Pavon has the ball on the left wing. OK, we can safely assume nothing will happen then. Pavon has the burst of a 70-year-old grandma.

19 mins -- Landon Donovan with a nice run on the right side, beats two guys and lays it off to Beckham, whose cross is cleared. Nice combination work there from the Galaxy stars; now, if they could just find a viable striker ...

17 mins -- Beckham's playing very very deep and not looking too active; his ankle obviously is troubling him. ... I spoke too soon. He just went in kamikaze style on a couple of D.C. players and almost maimed himself and Jaime Moreno at the same time. You have to love the man's commitment to a lost cause. He even gets booked for his efforts. Too bad he didn't also give them a little slap a la the slap he gave Pablo Aimar a couple of years ago.

12 mins -- The first tinge of excitement: a Beckham corner kick. It swerves in dangerously but is cleared without the Galaxy getting to it. It's a good thing the Galaxy have an elite aerial strike force well-equipped to take advantage of Beckham's deliveries ...

10 mins -- Jaime Moreno tries a "Bend It Like Beckham" special from long range and forces a good save from Joe Cannon. Corner kick to D.C. Nothing comes of it.

7 mins -- Not a lot happening, to be honest. Let's hope the Galaxy play better tonight than they did last Thursday. Things to note: Beckham is the captain tonight, displacing Landon Donovan.