Soccer

[ergo sum]

MLS All-Stars down FC Celtic
Angel, Toja score goals for MLS stars in the first half
By John Meyer
Denver Post Staff Writer
Commerce City -

Wearing a three-piece black suit and an open-collared white shirt, Beckham gave a five- minute interview to ESPN2 during halftime and then participated in an awards ceremony on the field with DC United's Under-17 team, which beat Kansas City's U-17 team in a tournament final earlier in the day.

On ESPN2, Beckham said he might not be able to make his debut with the Los Angeles Galaxy against Chelsea of the English Premier League on Saturday

"At the moment, it doesn't look good that I'm going to play," Beckham said. "The swelling is still there. I'm here for five years, I'm not here just for the game on Saturday."

Beckham said he was deeply disappointed not to be match fit.

"I want to get back playing as soon as possible," Beckham said.

The MLS is hoping to catch lightning in a bottle with Beckham, but several bolts of the real thing delayed the start of the game about 10 minutes. After the storm moved out of the area, the game began tentatively, both teams probing for openings.

Houston Dynamo midfielder Ricardo Clark made a nifty run through the right side of the Celtic defense in the seventh minute and fired a point-blank shot that was saved by Celtic goalkeeper Artur Boruc, who would soon become a very busy man.

In the 22nd minute Kansas City forward Eddie Johnson beat the Celtic defense and crossed a beautiful ball to Juan Toja of FC Dallas. Toja shot from the edge of the 6-yard box but Boruc made an instinct save with his right hand.

Boruc saved Celtic again in the 30th minute, stopping Johnson's tentative penalty kick.

But as the half progressed, the MLS stars began to control the ball and the tempo of play, and they took a 1-0 lead in the 36th minute when New York's Juan Pablo Angel split two defenders, took a beautiful through ball from Houston's Dwayne De Rosario and found the net.

The MLS struck again three minutes later when Toja pounced on Celtic's shoddy clearance for a 2-0 lead.

Staff writer John Meyer can be reached at 303-954-1616 or [e-mail].