The Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder was left out of the MLS Best XI this week, with the judging panel finding no place for him among the five-man midfield that recognized supposedly the best players in the league.

With the Galaxy preparing for the MLS Cup final against Real Salt Lake in Seattle on Sunday, and a nagging injury to his foot, Beckham has more important things to worry about than this omission. However, the fact that Landon Donovan, Dwayne De Rosario, Shalrie Joseph, Stuart Holden and Freddie Ljungberg were all chosen ahead of him is utterly ridiculous.

Clearly, the reduced number of games Beckham played -- he only returned from Italy in July -- was held against him. Even so, he has been the defining character of the season and his injection into the Galaxy's lineup changed the shape of the 2009 campaign.

Even with De Rosario, Toronto FC failed to reach the playoffs. Without him, the Canadian club would have been weaker but would probably only have been a handful of points worse. The Houston Dynamo's solid organization under Dominic Kinnear also means that without Holden, the Orange would likely have still finished near the top of the Western Conference. Ljungberg (Seattle Sounders) and Joseph (New England Revolution) both may have been the difference between making the playoffs and missing out for their respective clubs, while Donovan has manufactured another productive year.

But none have had the impact of Beckham, who came into a side that was struggling to score and drawing half of its games and turned them into title favorites.

All the accusations that were leveled at Beckham in 2008 -- that he was not at full fitness, that he was not interested and not trying his hardest -- have been rectified spectacularly this time around.

In terms of pure ability, he is among the very best in MLS, and his leadership and motivation deserved a place in MLS' top 11 list.

However, you sense that Beckham will barely give it a moment's thought, especially if he has an MLS Cup winners' medal in his pocket on Sunday night.

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If it's done right, there's no reason to think why playing one EPL game per season in the United States wouldn't be a rousing success. It might upset English football traditionalists, but it could help expand the league's global footprint and make EPL soccer something more than a novelty in these parts.

In order to do so, however, the games themselves must still feel like a novelty. (It's quite an anomaly, I know: In order to not be a novelty, the games themselves must stay a novelty.) Like it or not, the only way that soccer has proven its ability to be a mass success in the United States is when there are big-time events. World Cups (men's or women's), David Beckham debuts and exhibitions between European clubs and/or MLS teams can sell thousands of tickets at the biggest venues in the country.

This country has a huge "big event" complex. On the whole, the masses won't get excited about something unless it feels important. This is why gymnastics, figure skating and swimming are only big every four years. For this reason, MLS will never catch on with a huge audience. People don't think there's anything at stake. These aren't the best players or the best league, people rationalize, so why should I care?

The EPL won't have a problem establishing legitimacy over here. Even the greenest of sports fans understand that the EPL is the big-time. 

In order to sell a lot of tickets and make this venture worthwhile, though, the EPL would have to be careful which games it selects for the United States. A soccer equivalent of the New Orleans Saints-Miami Dolphins game (which was played in London last year) won't fly. People won't be filling Giants Stadium to see Stoke City vs. Portsmouth. It will take a Manchester United or Chelsea or Arsenal -- teams with American name recognition -- to generate interest.

The EPL also wouldn't have the luxury of picking one location and sticking with it (as the NFL has done with Wembley). The game will need to rotate on a yearly basis amongst cities with big soccer followings (Los Angeles, New York, Washington/Baltimore) and places with enthusiastic hosts (as Fenway Park apparently is) to ensure freshness in new markets.

Handled correctly, these games would have the potential to generate more casual interest in the EPL and, perhaps, could even give the afternoon games on Fox Soccer Channel (which recently re-upped its American contract) a big-event feel in the United States.

For 30 years people have asked "can soccer succeed in America?" Maybe the reason it hasn't is because people have been selling the wrong product. The EPL could be the right one.

The Argentina boss grabbed his genitals with both hands during a foul-mouthed rant following his side's qualification for the World Cup on Wednesday and now faces a disciplinary hearing.

Maradona, who has been under fire for months after Argentina nearly failed to reach South Africa, told his critics that they could "keep on sucking." See for yourself.

With his outburst broadcast live on television to a South American audience of millions, FIFA has been left with no option but to take action, meaning he could be banished from the dugout for up to five matches. Such a punishment would mean he would only resume sideline duties if Argentina reached the World Cup semifinals. A one- or two-game ban is probably the most likely outcome.

Argentinean journalist Marcela Mora y Araujo gave this excellent account of Maradona's latest public meltdown in British newspaper The Guardian.

The truly extraordinary thing is how Maradona could have realistically expected anything other than heavy criticism, given the team's dreadful displays. With two games left in qualifying, elimination was a serious possibility, but it was unthinkable for a nation boasting such a long soccer history, not to mention the best player in the world in Lionel Messi.

Maradona still has a lot of convincing to do before anyone starts believing he is the right man to lead Argentina to World Cup glory. But if this week is anything to go by, either way, it's going to be one heck of a ride.

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It took just a glance around the lower bowl of RFK Stadium, turned temporarily into a sea of white placards bearing the number "9," to see how much U.S. Soccer misses Charlie Davies.

Davies, the national team striker who was severely injured in a car crash early Tuesday morning, received a series of touching get-well messages from teammates and the Washington, D.C., crowd Wednesday night.

Captain Carlos Bocanegra dedicated the team's dramatic last-ditch 2-2 draw against Costa Rica to Davies, who is almost certain to miss the World Cup after being ruled out for between six to 12 months.

But as thoughts turn to South Africa next summer following an intriguing and tumultuous qualifying campaign, how much will Davies' presence be missed on the field?

While it is hard to read too much into what was effectively a meaningless game for the U.S. on Wednesday, with qualification having already been wrapped up four days earlier, the performance gave some kind of a glimpse into life without the young Sochaux front-man.

Davies is the only player in the squad who possesses a genuinely electrifying pace and that is a major reason why he has become such an important cog in coach Bob Bradley's machine.

Without him, the tempo of the U.S. attack becomes more languid - and more aerial - with the taller and slower Jozy Altidore stepping in against Costa Rica.

Davies brought an extra option and the kind of blistering speed capable of troubling any defense.

With his effervescent personality, Davies swiftly became a favorite of both fans and teammates alike. He is sorely missed already, but he could be missed even more in South Africa next summer.

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Photo courtesy Getty Images

Gulati made the extraordinary claim in an interview with the Associated Press on Friday in what comes across as a remarkable case of one-eyed optimism.

Bob Bradley's side is currently ranked 11th in the world and should wrap up a place in South Africa fairly comfortably over the next five days. However, victory in the World Cup, or even a spot in the semifinals, would be a miracle of epic proportions given the level of international opposition it will face once the event begins next June.

Sure, the USA beat European champion Spain in the Confederations Cup, but there is a world of difference between one magnificent upset and the overall elite consistency needed to progress deep into the biggest soccer event on the planet.

Yet before you write Gulati off as having his head in the clouds, consider that there may be a political and tactical element to his remarks.

The U.S. is bidding to host the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, with the decision to be made in December next year. A European bid – England, Spain/Portugal, Belgium/Holland or Russia – is expected to win the 2018 tournament.

That would leave the USA, Australia, South Korea, Japan, Qatar and Indonesia as the contenders for 2022 as the same continent cannot host successive tournaments. Out of those, the U.S. has the strongest current team, one of many factors which is looked at by the FIFA delegates. Only Australia, ranked 14th, comes close.

Gulati is going to keep reminding anyone who will listen how well the USA has performed recently. Don't bank on that ending any time soon.

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