MLS Select, the all-star team brought together to face Spanish giant Real Madrid, fell, 5-0, Tuesday night in the Trofeo Santiago Bernabeu, RealÆs annual preseason home opener.
Many MLS players looked overawed by the sight of playing against the famous ôGalacticosö and rarely troubled Real. Real put the game away with first-half goals by David Beckham (free kick from just outside the box) and Ronaldo. Madrid fans were beginning to whistle Real players for their failure to add to their advantage when Ronaldo added his second goal in the 73rd minute. Guti and Raul scored late goals for the Meringues, whose destroyed MLS Select with its counterattacks.
The MLS XIÆs best efforts came in the middle of the second half after the insertion of Jeff Cunningham and Youri Djorkaeff in the attack.
Trofeo Santiago Bernabeu
Aug. 23 in Madrid
Real Madrid (Spain) 5 MLS Select 0. Goals: Beckham 22, Ronaldo 39, 73, Guti 80, Raul 90.
Real Madrid — Diego Lopez, Salgado (Diogo, 85), Helguera (Woodgate, 86), Pavon (Mejia, 87), Roberto Carlos (Raul Bravo, 87); Gravesen (Pablo Garcfa, 68), Zidane (Guti, 63), Beckham, Baptista (Owen, 80), Raul, Ronaldo (Portillo, 87).
MLS Select — Reis (Rimando, 88), Hejduk, Mastroeni (Sequeira, 74), Conrad, Burciaga (Clark, 86); Joseph, OÆBrien, Mapp (Cunningham, 46), Dempsey (Kreis, 69); Donovan (Djorkaeff, 61) y Moreno (Guevara, 24).
Referee: Iturralde Gonzalez.
Att.: 60,000.