Get close

Red Bulls midfielder and U.S. Men's National Team veteran Claudio Reyna guest-blogs on The International Fixture.

Sidelined with a calf strain, Reyna skipped the Red Bulls' trip to Los Angeles for tonight's game against the Galaxy. Here, he discusses the Galaxy's two-headed scoring threat.

It's the same combination that we had to worry about last year. His passing and Landon's pace and runs and his ability to score goals is a great combination.

Beckham serves an amazing ball. He delivers great passes.

Landon has the pace and the cleverness to make good runs. For every team playing against L.A., it's pretty obvious the two players you need to key on and be alerted to every time either one has the ball.

That's something that it goes without saying that we'll be preparing for. They're the two threats on L.A.

How to shut down Beckham:

I think you've got to get close to him. I think that's the best way to defend. You've got to get their heads down.

What I mean by that is the closer you get to someone, they have to dribble, they have to get out of position. If [he] can pick his head up and have a look, that's when he's dangerous.

He only needs a couple of yards of space in order to deliver good balls. And if possible, force him to his left. His great passes are all obviously with his dominant foot.
Those are two basic points. When you play against high level, you have to get within their range and make them have their heads down, so that they don't see the field and also get them to their weaker foot.

The Red Bulls face the Galaxy at 10:30 p.m. tonight Eastern Time. The game will be broadcast on HDNet and MSG.

- As told to Tom Meagher on May 7 at Montclair State University