The 32-year-old England [Images] midfielder has been struggling to shake off a lingering ankle injury and Galaxy head coach Frank Yallop says he needs more time to recover.

"His ankle is still a little bit tight, although it has improved over the last week," Yallop told reporters. "We don't want to make it worse, and he's still a little bit sore. He needs to get to a point where he's comfortable."

Beckham, signed from Real Madrid on a $32.5 million five-year deal, was on the field for only 12 minutes, plus four minutes of stoppage time, for his Galaxy debut against FA Cup holders Chelsea on Saturday.

Since his arrival in Los Angeles 12 days ago, he has not been able to train with the Major League Soccer (MLS) team, mainly spending time in the treatment room and the gym.

"He's getting normal ice treatment and a lot of massage to try and get the swelling down," Yallop added.

Beckham twisted his ankle playing for his country against Estonia in a Euro 2008 [Images] qualifying match last month.

He aggravated it in his final appearance for Real 11 days later when his former team clinched the Spanish league title.

Tuesday's match is the Galaxy's first in the inaugural SuperLiga, an eight-team competition featuring four MLS sides from the U.S. and four teams from the Mexican first division.