The Official Site of Landon Donovan

Wed, Jun 9th 2010, 09:46

Donovan Plays With His Heart and Mind

At the start of the 2002 World Cup, the soccer world didn’t know quite what to make of Landon Donovan. He was a talented, highly touted 20-year-old attacking player who hadn’t done much of anything.

By the end of the tournament, he had two goals, led the Americans to the quarterfinal and was named the World Cup’s most outstanding young player.

“Being young and not knowing anything can be very positive sometimes,” Donovan said Wednesday, eight years later and three days before his third World Cup begins with a game against England in Rustenburg. “Looking back now at that player, mentally, it’s almost like a completely different person. And there are pluses and minuses to that.”

Donovan, 28, has been the first foot, and face, of American soccer for almost a decade. His hair is a bit thinner now, and the lines of his face a bit sharper than the jubilant young softie who didn’t know quite how to celebrate when his floating cross from the right flank ricocheted off Portugal’s Jorge Costa in the Americans’ 3-2 victory in the first round in South Korea in 2002.

By the time he scored a smashing header against Mexico in the round of 16 that year, he knew exactly what to do. His stellar play and emphatic celebration were the first hallmarks of his professional development.

“I’m not young any more,” he added. “As far as soccer goes, I am more or less what I have been for most of my career.”

That is, the United States team’s most talented and important player. He’ll likely play on the right flank against England, where he can join the attack and create opportunities for his teammates. Donovan’s passing has been sublime and his three-month stint in England, playing for Everton in the Premier League, showed doubters that he added grit to his repertoire.

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