Beckham Takes Knock in Galaxy Win

SHANGHAI, China (Ticker) - David Beckham set up one goal before picking up a minor knock as the Los Angeles Galaxy eased to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Shanghai-Hong Kong United in Shanghai on Wednesday night.

Carlos Ruiz scored all three goals as the Galaxy secured their first victory of the Asian tour. However, Beckham left after 70 minutes with a right thigh injury which is not thought to be serious and the decision to substitute him was taken as a precaution.

The Galaxy made a good start to the game as Ely Allen came close to scoring in the 21st minute when his close-range header flew over the bar. Beckham then swung in a corner eight minutes before the break that home goalkeeper Gu Chao did well to palm away. But, cheered on by more than 30,000 fans at the Shanghai Stadium, it was Beckham who provided the cross to open the scoring in first-half injury time. The former England captain player sent in an inviting cross to Ruiz who headed beyond goalkeeper Gu Chao to give the Galaxy the lead. Ruiz came close to doubling the advantage in the 65th minute when he went one-on-one with Gu Chao but poked his shot wide.

Four minutes later the local side had a good chance to level the scores when Zhu Zhengrong chested down a Wang Jiayu cross but shot wide. After Beckham's exit, the Galaxy extended their lead 11 minutes before time when Ruiz slotted home a cross from Sean Franklin. The forward completed his hat-trick two minutes later when he rifled a shot beyond Gu Chao. "It was nice to win the game," said Beckham.

"I think we played very well and we played good football. We had a good time here." Shanghai-Hong Kong United manager Xu Genbao shook off the defeat and said it was good for his team to test themselves against players with the caliber of Beckham. "The game was of benefit to my players who learned how to score from Beckham and his teammate who scored the three goals," he said.