With Donovan saying his passion has been waning the last COUPLE years, it makes total sense why Klinsmann left him off the 2014 squad (hindsight). With that said, Good for Landon to go with his heart or gut as he says and hangs them up. I will take this as a lesson for all in going with your heart and feelings. I've had a love hate perspective with Landon, but you can't deny his importance to US Soccer and MLS, at this point he is the most important player the US has produced to this point. And next to Beckham, the most important player that has played in MLS.
JK's decision was due to lack of leadership, people skills and ego. A need to make himself bigger than the situation. The man is not a leader. Top shelf college type recruiter, shameless self promoter, politician and motivator. As average a coach as any previous US coach out there. Listen to Franz B and how he managed different players and personalities in 90. Amusingly enough one of the guys he had to treat differently and with different rules was our little egomaniac coach. That is what a quality leader and manager does. Have said it from day one and it has not changed. Poor man manager and virtually no leadership skills. Gabrielle Marcotti said it best in a recent article...to really improve the US will eventually need a more mature coach than what JK can offer. Couldn't agree more.
A few more thoughts on Landon Donovan: 1) We, as fans, tend to hero-worship athletes based solely on their talent, when that's not the only measure of a person. As I've become a parent, I pay more attention to the kinds of examples I want my kids to follow; and, while it's okay to admire a gifted athlete, calling someone your hero is too much; but I would have no apprehension in my kids looking up to Landon Donovan, the person. One of the greatest measures of a person is the impact they have in the lives of others, and the outpouring of love, respect, and admiration that LD has elicited, reinforces that he is a good person. 2) It is telling that Donovan did not mention the German clubs in his farewell remarks. We can only speculate, but he most likely was miserable in Germany. As a fan of MLS, and witnessing the fight the league has against the perceptions many have of it, I can empathize with this young kid who went to Germany, and likely faced the bias against American players that other players have experienced, but probably even more. Let me ask this, as a person, if you are getting put down by those around you, do you stay there and take the punishment, or, if you get the chance, do you go someplace where you are appreciated? Many players don't get that chance, Landon did, and he chose to go where his talent was wanted and appreciated. 3) Many fans get on Landon Donovan for not sticking it out in Europe and view him as weak. To that I ask: what was his obligation to us as fans? I think as long as we saw him give his best (which he did), it really doesn't matter where he played his soccer. Again, here was this young kid, who probably saw that he had the talent, but was miserable fighting against the American player bias. He decided to head to MLS, a place where he felt wanted, and that in turn freed him to just play. I admire the fact he decided, instead, to grow the profile of MLS, a worthy pursuit. He made it okay for someone like Beckham to come over, and Beckham's arrival opened the doors for others to follow. He probably felt he needed to prove to himself he could be successful over in Europe, and he proved it when he headed to Everton, a place that wanted him and allowed him to display his talent freely, without the bias hovering over him. 4) Finally, if some people feel they need to put LD down because he did not fulfill their fantasies of an American player making it big over in Europe (it is telling that this same Euro-snobbery is shared by the US head coach), then I don't know what to tell you. It wasn't the time for LD to do that, instead he came home and has been helping to grow the game here. A day will come soon when Europe comes calling for our players instead of our players having to grovel to Europe to prove something they don't need to prove. You can't compare a player from South America or Africa to an American player heading over to Europe. The South American or African player probably have no other choices to make it big (this is their one truly big shot). Thanks to Landon Donovan's trailblazing, the American player has more choices available to them, as we have witnessed from Clint Dempsey, Michael Bradley, et al. returning to MLS. http://grantland.com/features/landon-donovan-gold-cup/ Thank you, Landon Donovan, for your example of what an athlete can be when he/she is, first and foremost, a good person:
Oh, please. Let it go. And many knowledgeable followers of the sport – if not most – believe it was purely "soccer reasons." Whether JK was right or wrong might be debated but the man's job is to win. It's absurd to think he would leave behind a player that he believed could help him do that.
It's absurd to think that....unless you have ever managed large groups of people, have three decades experience doing it, and have seen the capapbilities of narcissists and shameless self promoters, and what they are willing to do for their own sake, even if it harms the company itself. My words come with decades of proven managment success at high levels. Find me a successful manger, at any decent level, who knows about JK's history and they will agree. The only people I have seen who thought he was left off for soccer reasons are the folks who have always mocked LD throughout his career, and folks who are married to JK's bullshit/Tony Robbins persona. Soccer folks, even those who didn't think LD had enough drive as a player in his career, and who like JK overwhelmingly say they would have brought him. The nonsense is in your head. I readily admit I despise JK's personality because he is everything you fight to get rid of in high end management. The guy who really isn't that great, but through connections, timing, poor previous management who buy into the glitz and bull, has gotten into a pretty solid position. Whem that person is finally found out it is almost impossible to get rid of him. Great recruiter, politician, self promoter and motivator....strengths. Average coaching so far. Par for the course last cycle with how US Soccer has grown since 90. Did have one less full year that probably hurt him. Very narrow in his approach mentally. His way or highway. Poor player communication. Can't believe anything he says...even his hardcore supporters agree that you can't take his word at face value. Completely incapable of taking personal responsibility for his poor decisions while blatantly calling out players for their's. Changes story on issues to fit whatever narrative he wants, is convienent at the time....has done it many times, but the LD situation was the most blatant. Ignores US tradition/history/success as if it never happened....treats our warriors poorly(Boca)...and consistently blames others (MLS, players, college, system, culture) for his errors! We know our systems limitations, but his excuse making is getting old. Oh yeah....no personnel responsibility. We know ours Herr douchebag...how about yours? He is a terrible leader. Fact. I have been asked to join a corporate speaking circuit for Fortune 500 companies twice in my carrer and turned it down, so yeah....FN fact. A leader would have put his ego aside and found a place for a guy like LD. Of course great soccer coaches do this all of the time. JK couldn't and it hurt us. Find me a true soccer brain and 99.9% ofthe time they would agree. Has our boss admitted to any of his piss poor decisions so far all cycle? Nope. He doesn't have to worry...kittens will be kittens. Believe it or not I can evaluate his actual on the field decisions rather pragamatically because it's what's made me successful my entire career. I just have zero respect for a big giant douche of a person. He is everything I need out, unless it's sales or PR, and teach to remove from people's environments yet he runs our Nats. Hard to deal with that. The nonsense is that this average coach with clear leadership issues is lauded as being more. Just goes to show how easy it is to sway the mob and why it always happens in history. Shiny is nice and better, even if it is exactly the same as the one next to it without a label on it. Ohhh label is better!
You mean somebody like Jurgen Klinsmann? He's managed large groups of people (players), has three decades of experience as a leader (both as a player when he was captain of a number of teams and as a coach), and has certainly seen the capabilities of narcissists and shameless self promoters among all the players he's played with or coached, not to mention other personnel he would have worked with. Or me. Assuming "soccer reasons" includes questioning how dedicated LD was to the game of soccer. I've given you some friendly feedback about your JK obsession but now I'm going to be a little more blunt. Get off your god damned high horse and accept you aren't the end-all and be-all judge of Jurgen Klinsmann among American fans.
This has not been my experience at all. To state this so matter-a-factly is pretty absurd. Yeah everyone knows that coaches never let their ego's get in the way of good or bad decisions.
My problem isn't so much the points he is arguing, but that this is meant to be a thread about Landon Donovan, not a thread about Jurgen Klinsmann. I am disappointed Landon is leaving, but I like what he said about disagreeing with those who advised him he has an obligation to keep earning butt loads of money. If he has enough to take care of himself and his family, tain't nobody's business but his own if he doesn't think he needs more. And he leaves with people saying, "Bravo! Bravo! Encore!" Not with them saying "For the love of God, stop using up a DP slot, old man."
That's a pretty shitty thing to encompass/define within "soccer reasons." His whole effin' career people were "questioning how dedicated Donovan was to the game of soccer." And all that em-effin' player did throughout his career was produce and lead by example like no other American player has done in the history of the game. LD's level of dedication to the game, no matter what anyone thought or believed that level ever was, certainly was a level of dedication that was the foundation of everything LD achieved in his career -- for club and country, up to and including his domination of the 2013 Gold Cup. To claim there were "soccer reasons" that differentiated LD in the summer of 2014 from the same player in the summer of 2013 is highly ridiculous, imo. imo, any/every American soccer fan should have wanted Donovan at the 2014 WC. And a manager opting not to take him in the squad was a significant error.
Because he gets a pass for going on walkabout to decide how dedicated to the game he was when the national team was hitting its low point and then heading into its toughest WCQ game of the cycle (the Azteca)? I was satisfied with JK's decision not to take him, and I have yet to see a reasoned argument that the U.S. would have progressed further with him on the roster so I'm not seeing how JK failed by not taking him.
I agree. There are plenty of other places you guys can go to have the Donovan/Klinsmann debate. Go find them.
I could be wrong, but I'm not convinced he's all the great of motivator. But the rest is pretty spot on. Of course, the US soccer Youth National team program seems to be plagued with similar types who are very poor at what they do. At least JK is competent.
The thing I will remember most about Landon was his early days at San Jose. That sticks with me more than anything because I can remember tuning in to those Quakes games specifically to watch how Landon might develop. Even then you could see that he was something special. The intelligent runs, the speed, his touch, his vision and his class, it was all there in glimpses like a signal gradually cutting through the noise. The prospect of what he would become was still just a hope, but you could see that there was potential there on another level and it was exciting to see for a fan that was resigned to just hoping for the best from our mediocre talent year after year. I think this is why seeing what he went on to become was so rewarding as a US and MLS fan, especially as he kept delivering year after year. As another poster said the end of LD's journey as a player also feels like the end of an amazing era for the league and the national team. From my perspective its been a great 14 years.
Well, it sure did take a long time for LD to retire from our little retirement league over here in the good ol' States! My first LD memory, Shock the World: Thanks for everything, LD.
There used to be a time when I wondered who would be the first American soccer pro upon calling it quits, that would have some legacy and thus to give some sort of memorable farewell speech a la a Lou Gehrig's 1939 speech at his home stadium and I think the opportunity is now at hand for Landon Donovan to deliver just such a moment for soccer in our nation. The love hate relationship many have with him is there no doubt, however at his farewell game, it should be a time to reflect on all the tremendous memories he has given the soccer world. Being the Mexicutioner is my favorite. Jack Edwards call of Donovan's header versus el Try.