The Donovan/Beckham Feud Developing Into the Kobe/Shaq Disaster?

The city of Los Angeles is again faced with a feud between teammates that both have the credentials to be labeled as their sport's best.

And no, I'm not talking about the NBA or the Kobe and Shaq rivalry.

Instead, I am mentioning the feud between MLS superstars and Los Angeles Galaxy teammates Landon Donovan and David Beckham. The beginning stages of the feud can be traced back to the day when David Beckham was allowed to play with AC Milan during the MLS offseason. 

Many MLS fans were not happy with the loan, but were willing to accept this decision by the Galaxy. All was working out between Beckham and the Galaxy, up until Beckham revealed that he would stay longer than intended and remain with AC Milan well past the MLS season opener for the Galaxy.

Thats when the war-of-words between Donovan and Beckham began. Donovan was interviewed for an article featured in Sports Illustrated, and during the interview labeled Beckham as being "unprofessional" and a "quitter" while on loan to AC Milan.

These accusations did not settle over well for Beckham.

Beckham replied by saying that he had never been labeled as unprofessional throughout his 17 year playing career. He then labeled Donovan for being "unprofessional" by expressing his feelings to the media instead of to Beckham himself.

These harsh words being relayed to each other through the media was not helping either. Could you imagine, each day reading the paper and seeing yourself being criticized by a teammate?

These thoughts then took me back in time to another famous teammate feud: The feud between Kobe and Shaq.

During the three-peat Championship run for the Los Angeles Lakers in the early 2000's, Kobe and Shaq had the on-court chemistry. The chemistry did not, however, shift over to off the court. Everyday, one or the other would be criticized, by the other.

It got to the point where the Lakers could not deal with the attention set only on the feud between Kobe and Shaq, so they had to get rid of one of the superstars.

That got me thinking: "Will the same be true when it comes down to the LA Galaxy?"

Will Landon Donovan or David Beckham have to be removed from the Galaxy organization in order for the feud to settle down? I believe that problems between teammates can be straightened out, but I'm just not sure if one of the superstars with belittle himself in order for the feud to die out.

One other major factor between Donovan and Beckham is the fact that Donovan is the captain of this year's Galaxy team. He was named the MLS Player of the Year at the ESPY's, and has been solely dedicated to the MLS season. The same can not be said of Beckham.

He has already stated publicly that his overall goal is to be conditioned and ready to play in one final World Cup for England. That doesn't sound like he really needs the MLS, only that he is playing in the league to stay conditioned.

So you tell me, if you were a member of the Galaxy organization, can the feud between Donovan and Beckham be settled? Or will one of the superstars have to be removed from the organization altogether (Such as in the case of Kobe and Shaq) in order for the feud to be resolved?

The city of LA has once again publicized a feud between teammates, now it is up to the Galaxy organization to settle the feud before it gets too ugly. Donovan would be the one to most likely stay, but could the Galaxy afford to get rid of Beckham and jeopardize the fate of both their organizations and the MLS altogether?