I personally grew up idolizing Oliver Kahn, but no soccer fan with any respect for the game can argue that Landon Donovan is not one of their favorite American players. He’s the best player the US Men’s National Soccer Team has ever seen. He’s even played for Bayern Munich, in addition to the San Jose Earthquakes, LA Galaxy, Everton, and Bayer Leverkusen. He’s awesome.
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Now, though, he’s getting ready for a new chapter in his life: retirement.
In a recent interview published in Sports Illustrated, Donovan talked about all that he plans to do with his not-so-distant abundance of free time. He wants to go to college, something that going pro at 17 inhibited him from doing in the past. He wants to do more commentating on games- although, he admitted, he knows he’s got to work on his television presence. (Seriously, though- am I the only one who thought he looked like he was tied to the chair during his World Cup commentary this summer?)
Rumors are flying all over the place surrounding the star- they say that he’s past his prime, and that he’s not on the best of terms with the current USMNT coach, Jurgen Klinsmann. Donovan has chosen to look past all the talk, though- and is instead just focusing on moving forward.
Whether he’s sleeping in, learning to golf, or launching a new career, though, one thing is certain- when Landon Donovan retires, he won’t be bitter about it.
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