LA Galaxy wins 6-1 in Philippines friendly

LA Galaxy wins 6-1 in Philippines friendly

Published Dec. 3, 2011 4:28 p.m. ET

David Beckham scored the opening goal Saturday in the Los Angeles Galaxy's 6-1 win over the Philippine national team in a friendly that was part of the MLS champions' Asian tour.

Beckham gave his team the lead with a curling shot in the 20th minute, and Mike Magee was set up by Landon Donovan for the second goal before halftime.

The Galaxy led 2-1 at the break after Phil Younghusband scored for the Azkals, but the visitors added four goals in the second half.

Adam Cristman scored two goals after the break, with Robby Keane and Greg Belhalter getting one apiece.

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After being substituted midway through the second half, Beckham handed his shirt to boxing champion Manny Pacquiao, who was one of about 13,000 spectators for the game.

''I am a huge fan of his,'' the former England captain said.

Philippine coach Michael Weiss said he was ''extremely unhappy'' with his team's performance in the second half after the strong showing in the first.

Beckham played longer than he was expected to and received a standing ovation as he left the field.

''When I play, I always want to play the whole game,'' he said in a television interview after the game. ''I was really enjoying myself out there.''

Donovan said ''it was a fun night for us'' and praised the efforts of the Philippine team.

''The pace that we played out was very fast and I think that as the game wore on they probably got a little tired, but they have some very talented players,'' he said.

The match was meant to boost interest in soccer in the country, where basketball and boxing are more popular.

Philippine organizers of the match, dubbed locally as the ''Dream Cup,'' installed a giant video screen outside Manila's Rizal Memorial Football Stadium where hundreds more watched the game, which also was shown live on television.

Manila was the second leg of the Galaxy's Asian tour. They beat Indonesia 1-0 Wednesday and were to fly to Australia for the last leg after Saturday's game.

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