David Beckham is still a major injury doubt for the Los Angeles Galaxy's SuperLiga clash with Mexican giants Chivas Guadalajara on Saturday.
The former Real Madrid midfielder has continued to struggle with a swollen left ankle following ligament damage sustained at the end of Spanish La Liga season.
Having made a late substitute's appearance against Chelsea last Saturday, Beckham missed last Tuesday's 2-1 SuperLiga victory over Mexican champions CF Pachuca.
And although head coach Frank Yallop revealed on Monday that the ankle problem was improving, the former England captain has still not taken a full part in training since his arrival in California two weeks ago.
The 32-year-old missed another practice session on Thursday, according to a team spokesman, who said that rather than joining his team-mates on a practice pitch at the Home Depot Center, Beckham stayed inside to receive "more treatment and rehab."
Whether Beckham plays or not, it will have little bearing on the size of the crowd for Saturday clash with Chivas.
The Guadalajara club and Mexico City's Club America are their nation's biggest two clubs and have a huge following among Mexican communities in cities across the United States.
The last time they played in Los Angeles, Chivas drew a record crowd of 92,650 as they took on Barcelona 12 months ago at the Coliseum.
Manchester United played at the Coliseum in a friendly against Club America in July 2003 and the match-up, won by United, attracted 57,365 a month after Beckham left for Real Madrid.
Chivas and the Galaxy return to the stadium this weekend with Coliseum spokesman Jon Lee anticipating another big crowd, which is expected to reach 60,000,
"It's difficult to say what the attendance will be," Lee said. "It's more of a walk-up crowd but we have sold plenty of tickets. We're expecting a big crowd, it's got a lot of momentum.
"Chivas against Barcelona was a sell-out last year, 92,650, which was an all-time record for us here at the stadium for a soccer game.
"That's a lot of people and it felt like it too. Then it was predominantly a Mexican crowd but not exclusively.
"It's a big building and you've got an audience that cares a lot about the product on the field and is emotionally invested so that's a prescription for it being pretty electric."
ends
Having made a late substitute's appearance against Chelsea last Saturday, Beckham missed last Tuesday's 2-1 SuperLiga victory over Mexican champions CF Pachuca.
And although head coach Frank Yallop revealed on Monday that the ankle problem was improving, the former England captain has still not taken a full part in training since his arrival in California two weeks ago.
The 32-year-old missed another practice session on Thursday, according to a team spokesman, who said that rather than joining his team-mates on a practice pitch at the Home Depot Center, Beckham stayed inside to receive "more treatment and rehab."
Whether Beckham plays or not, it will have little bearing on the size of the crowd for Saturday clash with Chivas.
The Guadalajara club and Mexico City's Club America are their nation's biggest two clubs and have a huge following among Mexican communities in cities across the United States.
The last time they played in Los Angeles, Chivas drew a record crowd of 92,650 as they took on Barcelona 12 months ago at the Coliseum.
Manchester United played at the Coliseum in a friendly against Club America in July 2003 and the match-up, won by United, attracted 57,365 a month after Beckham left for Real Madrid.
Chivas and the Galaxy return to the stadium this weekend with Coliseum spokesman Jon Lee anticipating another big crowd, which is expected to reach 60,000,
"It's difficult to say what the attendance will be," Lee said. "It's more of a walk-up crowd but we have sold plenty of tickets. We're expecting a big crowd, it's got a lot of momentum.
"Chivas against Barcelona was a sell-out last year, 92,650, which was an all-time record for us here at the stadium for a soccer game.
"That's a lot of people and it felt like it too. Then it was predominantly a Mexican crowd but not exclusively.
"It's a big building and you've got an audience that cares a lot about the product on the field and is emotionally invested so that's a prescription for it being pretty electric."
ends
Copyright (c) Press Association
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