A second-half goal by Jefferen Suarez was enough to give FC Barcelona a 2-1 win against the Los Angeles Galaxy in a friendly Saturday night.
A sold-out crowd of 93,137 at the Rose Bowl gave the game an international match atmosphere as Barcelona kicked off their preseason tour through the United States.
Barca is one of four European teams to win its league, national cup and a continental championship in one season. Last season's UEFA Champions League winners, Barca also won Spain's La Liga (first division) and the nation's Copa del Rey in the same season.
It was the Galaxy's second match against an international powerhouse club. The Galaxy tied 2-2 with AC Milan July 12 at The Home Depot Center.
"Anytime you get an opportunity to play Barcelona it has to be a positive experience, no doubt about that," said Galaxy coach Bruce Arena. "The timing I'm not sure about, but certainly I think the timing was much better than against Milan. At least we had a week before the Kansas City game."
This time, at the Rose Bowl it was Barca bringing its world-renowned superstars such as Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry, Rafael Marquez, Dani Alves and Xavi Hernandez, to name a few.
And most saw the playing field Saturday in front of what was reported as the largest soccer crowd in the United States since the 1994 World Cup Final (94,194). The crowd broke the record for the largest attendance involving a team from a U.S. professional league, besting the crowd 92,216, on June 16, 1996 also at the Rose Bowl, for a USA-Mexico and Los Angeles Galaxy-Tampa Bay Mutiny doubleheader.
Barca coach Josep Guardiola used most of his players in the match as his team is getting ready for the upcoming Spanish league season. Guardiola substituted virtually all his starters at the half, including Suarez, the man with the winning goal.
Suarez, who came on at halftime, took a filtered pass from Sergio Busquets after sneaking behind two Galaxy defenders. Suarez didn't waste the chance and sent his shot past Galaxy goalkeeper Josh Saunders in the 67th minute to break a 1-1 tie.
Galaxy superstar David Beckham silenced some fans and sent others into frenzy in the 44th minute with a goal via a free kick.
Beckham talked about the possibility of winning over some disgruntled Galaxy fans with his goal. Some fans are upset at the British star wanted to continue in Italy and play with AC Milan instead of the Galaxy and have expressed their displeasure since his return to MLS action in mid-June.
"Maybe, maybe not," Beckham said. "If I did then great, if not, then I'm not going to lose any sleep. Like I said before, I always work hard for the team, I work hard for the manager and I work hard for the fans. Sometimes it's good enough, sometimes it's not. But I enjoyed my goal tonight."
The Galaxy midfielder bent his shot into the upper-left corner of the net out from about 25 yards out, far from the reach of Barcelona goalkeeper Jose Manuel Pinto, to tie the match at 1-1 heading into halftime.
It was a play right out of a vintage Beckham highlight reel and it was set up by a Barcelona foul. Toure Yaya took out Landon Donovan's legs from behind near the top of the penalty box, prompting referee Baldomero Toledo to show Yaya a yellow card.
Beckham's goal was his first since returning to the Galaxy in July after a stint with Italian club AC Milan. Beckham, who was loudly booed every time he touched the ball, has played in four matches, two of those regular season MLS games.
The stadium erupted in perhaps the loudest cheer of the night when Barcelona took a 1-0 lead in the 11th minute when Pedro Rodriguez sent a loose ball past Saunders.
The Barca striker to took the rebound off a Messi shot near the goalmouth, taking the ball out of the reach of a reaching Saunders. Messi's shot hit Galaxy defender A.J. DeLaGarza and ricocheted back into the penalty area. That's when Rodriguez took advantage and finished off the play.
Barcelona kept pressuring the Galaxy up top using a fluid brand of soccer to freeze defenders. Todd Dunivant had to clear a ball near the line after Barca's Krkic Brojan sent a volley over Saunders in the 38th minute.
Barcelona controlled possession for most of the first half. The Galaxy's only shot on goal came in the 13th minute when Jovan Kirovski sent a header off an Eddie Lewis center into Pinto's hands.
Beckham helped create another opportunity for the Galaxy in the 30th minute when he sent a cross into the penalty area from left to right. Kirovski got a piece of Beckham's centered pass with a header, sending the ball zooming just above the crossbar.
The Galaxy still couldn't find the target in the second half. Donovan sent another ball high over the crossbar in the 74th minute off a Chris Klein centered pass.
Despite the Galaxy's miscues, the team did enough to impress Guardiola.
"They are strong physical players," he said.. "For us it was difficult to win battles one-on-one. The feet of Beckham are always great. Donovan is so fast and he created some problems in the second half. But I am impressed and I am glad to see soccer in the U.S. is getting better and hopefully it keeps going like this."
Ivan Orozco is a contributor to MLSnet.com.
