Ankle injury limits Beckham to reserve role in debut

CARSON, Calif. — David Beckham began his daunting challenge to convert the United States into a soccer-loving nation with an uneventful debut for the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer on Saturday night.

Beckham got into a 1-0 exhibition loss to Chelsea of the English Premier League in the 78th minute, jogging onto the field amid huge cheers and a sea of camera flashes from the sold-out crowd of 27,000 at The Home Depot Center.

"The atmosphere is incredible," Beckham said.

Including stoppage time, Beckham was on the field for slightly more than 16 minutes.

The 32-year-old midfielder spent most of the match on the bench because of a nagging left-ankle injury.

There were cheers each time Beckham touched the ball, the highlight being a corner kick he took in stoppage time. After taking about 10 minutes to get loose on the sideline, the ex-Real Madrid player entered as a substitute for Alan Gordon.

"I'm not fit. I haven't trained since I got here," former England captain Beckham said. "But it's nice to be out there."

Chelsea captain John Terry scored in the 49th minute on a shot that went in after hitting both posts.

Chelsea took 25 shots, compared with five for the Galaxy, and had a 6-2 edge in shots on goal.

When Beckham sat before the match, he was quickly surrounded by about 100 photographers pushing and shoving.

The scrum furiously snapped away within inches of him before being shoved back by about 10 security guards.

Note

• Celebrity spectators included Beckham's pop-star wife, Victoria; actresses Katie Holmes, Eva Longoria and Jennifer Love Hewitt; NBA player Kevin Garnett; and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.