Perhaps USMNT coach Jürgen Klinsmann provided fans with some reasoning as to why he left American star Landon Donovan off of the 2014 World Cup roster - even despite his decorated resume.
The longtime U.S. midfielder will play in his last game with the men's national team on Friday night against Ecuador. Donovan announced in August that he would be retiring from soccer at the end of the MLS season. The 32-year-old holds the record for goals and assists for the USMNT as well as the MLS.
But despite all of those accolades, Klinsmann opted to leave Donovan off of the World Cup roster, effectively ending his career as a soccer player for the national team. The United States was again eliminated in the first round of the knockout stages against Belgium after escaping the 'Group of Death.' Although Donovan is an aging player, his experience and leadership could have provided help to the young U.S. team.
"I think it could have gone even further than that," Klinsmann said of the USMNT campaign in the 2010 World Cup, in this ESPNFC.com article. "As a coach, you always want to see a player that drives for his 100 percent. I wished in a certain way, ah, he [Donovan] could have done a bit more here and a bit more there."
In the 2010 World Cup, the United States came in first place in their group for the first time in 80 years thanks to Donovan's goal against Algeria in extra time, which gave the U.S. a win in their final group match and advanced them to the knockout stages. To date, it's seen as the most exciting win in the team's history. However, they lost to Ghana in the Round of 16.
Klinsmann has coached Donovan before, when the midfielder was loaned to Bayern Munich in 2009. He appeared in seven games and scored no goals and had no assists before returning back to the Los Angeles Galaxy. Klinsmann was fired shortly thereafter, and that may have factored into his decision to keep Donovan off of the World Cup roster.
"I don't think that Jürgen Klinsmann understands who Landon Donovan is as a player or as a person," said Alexi Lalas after the USMNT released their 2014 World Cup roster. "I think he can't fathom some of the decisions he's made because he puts them up against how he would go about things in his career and in his life."
Nonetheless, the World Cup is over and Donovan was unable to play with his fellow teammates following Klinsmann's decision, but he'll be playing in his final game with the USMNT tonight, and focus on cherishing the moment.
"I am very honored to wear the armband for the national team again," said Donovan. "It has been a while since that has happened I want to enjoy it. I want to soak it up."
