Donovan Among 7 Cuts On US World Cup Roster
STANFORD, Calif. (AP) -- Landon
Donovan, the most accomplished American player in the history of men's
soccer, won't be going to his fourth World Cup.
The 32-year-old
attacker, who set the national team record for goals and assists while
winning five titles in Major League Soccer, was among seven players cut
Thursday when coach Jurgen Klinsmann got down to the 23-man limit well
before the June 2 deadline.
''I
was looking forward to playing in Brazil and, as you can imagine, I am
very disappointed with today's decision,'' Donovan said in a statement
posted on Facebook. ''Regardless, I will be cheering on my friends and
teammates this summer, and I remain committed to helping grow soccer in
the U.S. in the years to come.''
Defenders Brad Evans, Clarence Goodson and Michael Parkhurst also were cut along with midfielders Joe Corona and Maurice Edu, and forward Terrence Boyd.
Just six players return from the 2010 team: goalkeepers Tim Howard and Brad Guzan; midfielder Michael Bradley; forwards Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey; and defender DaMarcus Beasley, bidding to become the first American to play in his fourth World Cup.
Beasley and Donovan were teammates on the U.S. team that finished fourth in the 1999 FIFA Under-17 World Championship.
''Landon is my
brother. I've known Landon since I was 15. We've been through a lot
together,'' Beasley said. ''To not have him there is difficult.''
Klinsmann
had announced a preliminary 30-man roster May 12, and training began
two days later at Stanford University's football and soccer stadiums.
When they arrived for Thursday's practice, players had no idea this
would be cutdown day.
Having
already watched his team in scrimmages against Stanford last Saturday
and the L.A. Galaxy II three days later, Klinsmann felt the impetus to
make decisions well before upcoming exhibitions against Azerbaijan,
Turkey and Nigeria.
''We
discussed it every day, when is a good time and how we felt since we go
into another scrimmage tomorrow morning,'' he said in a golf cart
outside the locker room, looking ahead to a practice session Saturday
against the San Jose Earthquakes' reserves.
He
put off discussing the Donovan decision until a Friday news conference.
Asked whether he agonized over it, he said ''a little bit of time.''
The U.S. Soccer Federation
quoted Klinsmann as saying ''this is certainly one of the toughest
decisions in my coaching career, to tell a player like him, with
everything he has done and what he represents, to tell him that he's not
part of that 23 right now.''
''I
just see some other players slightly ahead of him,'' Klinsmann said,
''He took it the best way possible. His disappointment is huge, which I
totally understand. He took it very professionally. He knows I have the
highest respect for him, but I have to make the decisions as of today
for this group going to Brazil.''
Donovan,
the American record holder with 57 international goals and second with
156 appearances, was gone by the time the roster was announced. Players
who survived the cut met in the Stanford football locker room for a
meeting that ended with applause, went in golf carts to a nearby sand
volleyball court and had fun playing a kick version of volleyball. They
returned to the football locker room for the gear, and as they left the
Stanford band gathered outside and serenaded them with ''Star Wars.''
''Impressive. It's funny, but it's nice,'' Howard said.
Klinsmann's
son, Jonathan, a goalkeeper who was with the U.S. under-18 team last
month, created a stir when he tweeted: ''HAHAHAHAHAHAH DONOVAN HAHAHAHAA
I DIDNT EVEN NOTICE UNTIL MY PHONE NOTIFIED ME'' followed by four
emoticons with tears and another ''HAHA.'' The account was quickly
deleted.
Donovan, scoreless in seven games this season with the Los Angeles Galaxy, was bypassed in favor of 23-year-old Aron Johannsson and 31-year-old Chris Wondolowski, who joined Jozy Altidore and Clint Dempsey as the forwards.
Klinsmann also took 18-year-old midfielder Julian Green, who was eligible to play for the U.S. and Germany and only made his national team debut last month.
Eric
Wynalda, a forward for the U.S. at the 1990, 1994 and 1998 World Cups,
said Klinsmann's decision will be compared with coach Steve Sampson
announcing two months before the 1998 tournament that he was dropping
captain John Harkes.
''That
was an incredibly disruptive decision that really destroyed our team. A
lot of people are going to make that correlation, and I don't think they
should because it's a different scenario,'' said Wynalda, now an
analyst for Fox. ''The implications of leaving Landon out of this team
could strengthen the side. Where we've relied so much on him in the
past, this forces other people to really feel the belief from their
manager. As horrible as this must be for Landon, and as agonizing as it
is for Jurgen, these are the tough decisions you pay Jurgen Klinsmann a
lot of money to make.''
Sampson said the two calls aren't comparable.
''Mine was a disciplinary
issue. His I'm sure is based purely or form,'' Sampson said. ''I was
surprised at the decision. I would have not have been surprised if
Landon didn't start. I still believe him coming off the bench would have
been a good option for Jurgen during the World Cup.''
Donovan
was a mainstay of the national team before he took a sabbatical of
about four months after the 2012 season, spending part of the time in
Cambodia. Klinsmann said Donovan would have to earn his spot back.
He
restored Donovan to the roster for last summer's CONCACAF Gold Cup,
where Donovan excelled, and played Donovan for World Cup qualifiers
later in the year. But Klinsmann kept him out of the starting lineup for
last month's exhibition against Mexico, saying Donovan practiced poorly
because of a knee problem.
Donovan said this week his knee was OK.
''I'm
very confident in my abilities and I think I'm deserving to be a part
of the squad, but I have to prove that and I have to earn it,'' he said
Monday.
The roster includes 10
players from MLS, up from four in 2010, and just five players who have
appeared in a previous World Cup - the fewest since the American
returned to soccer's showcase in 1990 after a 40-year absence.
Five
of the players are German-Americans who chose the U.S. over the nation
they grew up in: defender John Brooks, Timmy Chandler and Fabian Johnson, joined by Green and Jermaine Jones in the midfield. Chandler has not played for the national team since his competitive debut in February 2013.
Goodson and Parkhurst were among the MLS players cut.
''Gutted,'' Parkhurst tweeted. ''At peace tho knowing i did everything i could and made it a tough decision for coaches.''
Source:yahoo.com
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