Soccer's star power

In a dream scenario for Major League Soccer, David Beckham, Freddie Ljungberg and Cuauhtemoc Blanco would all be in the starting 11 this Wednesday as the MLS All-Stars take on Everton FC.

The atmosphere at Rio Tinto Stadium would be electric with arguably the three most decorated players in the league all donning the same uniform. Free kicks would create a sea of outstretched arms holding cell phone cameras. In the end, it wasn't meant to be. Beckham's winter detour to Italy prevented the dream scenario from becoming a reality.

Even though it's tough to downplay the significance of Beckham's absence, it's not like the rest of the MLS All-Stars are a bunch of John Does. Ljungberg and Blanco are major superstars in their own right, whereas guys like Kasey Keller and Landon Donovan are household names in the soccer world.

"Individually the names kind of speak for themselves," said MLS All-Star coach Dominic Kinnear. "It's an all-star team, so you expect the talent to be there."

Real Salt Lake midfielder Kyle Beckerman, who in his 10th MLS season is making his first All-Star appearance, is quite in awe of his teammates this week. During Monday's extremely short training session in Park City he couldn't help but notice the skill surrounding him.

"Just playing 5 v. 2 with the guys you can see the class. You get a closer look at these guys, and everybody is so talented. There's some stars, there definitely is, so we should have a good team to play against Everton," said Beckerman.

No stars are brighter than Ljungberg and Blanco.

Ljungberg spent 11 seasons playing in the top flight English Premier League, winning a pair of league titles with Arsenal, and is regarded as one of the greatest players in club history. He's also represented the Swedish National Team 75 times, including two World Cups (2002 and 2006) and four European Championships (2000, 2004, 2008).

His skills aren't just limited to the soccer field. Regarded as the second best looking soccer player, behind Beckham of course, Ljungberg was one of the signature models for Calvin Klein underwear earlier this decade with billboards of him plastered around the world.

As for Blanco, his skill on the field is undeniable. In his three years in MLS he's burned just about every team with a scintillating goal, and last year he was named the MLS All-Star Game MVP for leading his squad to a 3-2 victory over West Ham also of the English Premier League.