Newcastle Jets midfielder Ruben Zadkovich believes the visit of MLS giants LA Galaxy is 'great' for football in the Hunter region. The Galaxy, with David Beckham and Landon Donovan in tow, arrive in Newcastle today ahead of the exhibition match with the Jets at EnergyAustralia Stadium on Saturday night and Zadkovich is looking forward to the event.
"The fans must be just full of the excitement by now. The community interest and support for this game has been intense," Zadkovich said.
"It's great for football in Australia, but especially for the Hunter region and Newcastle."
The former Derby County man was involved the last time Beckham and the Galaxy came to Australia, in 2007 when he was at Sydney FC, and says he cannot wait to again lock horns with the former Manchester United star.
"It was a brilliant game to be involved in [when Sydney defeated Galaxy 5-3 in 2007, with Zadkovich scoring], the atmosphere was electric and the game had everything," he added.
"It was supposed to be a friendly but the team played really well that night, there were a few fireworks, Beckham scored - honestly it was like it had been scripted perfectly. "Beckham is a brilliant player, even now, but no one's going to be holding back, that's for sure. You don't want to be left looking like an idiot or embarrassed by the result."