Magee leads Beckham-less Galaxy past Fire 2-0
BRIDGEVIEW -- Mike Magee had a goal and an assist to help the Los Angeles Galaxy overcome the absence of David Beckham and beat the Chicago Fire 2-0 on Wednesday night at Toyota Park.
Magee, a native of Chicago, scored in the 23rd minute after Jovan Kirovski converted a midfield turnover into a counter-attack for the Galaxy (8-4-10). Los Angeles was playing without Beckham after he earned a one-game suspension for a red card in Saturday's 2-0 loss to Seattle.
In the 54th minute, Magee sent a lead pass to Landon Donovan, who raced 50 yards past two defenders before scoring past goalkeeper Jon Busch.
Donovan started for the first time since being diagnosed with the swine flu last week. The illness limited the Galaxy captain to 45 minutes off the bench Saturday.
Los Angeles moved past Seattle and into second in the Western Conference, five points behind first-place Houston.
The Galaxy lost goalkeeper Donovan Ricketts in the 85th minute after a collision with Fire forward Stefan Dimitrov. Ricketts was replaced by backup Josh Saunders.
The Fire, who failed to put a shot on goal, lost for the second time in three games. They remained second in the East, four points behind Columbus.