Klinsmann jolts squad by excluding Donovan from World Cup roster

Kyle McCarthy, FOX Soccer
Klinsmann jolts squad by excluding Donovan from World Cup roster-United States men's national team manager Jurgen Klinsmann always promised a surprise or two with his World Cup roster. He approaches his duties with his own unique perspective. He assembles his squads with an expansive mindset. He shuns convention. He thinks well outside the box.

Few people expected him to spring this sort of country-shaking, mind-blowing shock, though. Klinsmann revealed his 23-man roster for the World Cup on Thursday afternoon and left Landon Donovan off of it.

Donovan isn'€™t some fringe player operating around the margins or some spent force clinging onto hope in the winter of his career. He is the leading scorer in the history of the United States men's national team. He is on the very short list of the best players to ever wear the red, white and blue. He is still one of the best players in Major League Soccer. And now he is surplus to Klinsmann'€™s requirements.

"It has been an honor and privilege to have represented the US National Team in three World Cups," Donovan said on his official Facebook page late Thursday evening. "I was looking forward to playing in Brazil, as you can imagine, I am very disappointed with today's decision."By just about every measure, it is a staggering and seemingly imprudent decision. Donovan -- alongside Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey and Tim Howard -- represents one of the few players proven under the glare of a World Cup.

He delivers time and time again in the biggest game, a fact reinforced by his heroics against Algeria to send the Americans through four years ago. Even at this stage of his career and even if only used as a substitute, he rests comfortably among the best players at Klinsmann'€™s disposal.

It is a bold and risky decision to leave one of the few players of established class out for this arduous World Cup journey. There are no replacements for Donovan in the pool, no players capable of replicating his particular set of skills. Klinsmann -- the same man who brought Donovan to Bayern Munich and who welcomed him back into the fold after his oft-discussed sabbatical last year -- understands his utility. He simply doesn'€™t value him enough anymore to include him on his 23-man list.

The grounds for that sort of judgment encompass far more than his performances during the first week of a World Cup training camp. It is a wider verdict about his perceived place in the pecking order and his usefulness to a side where he might not feature as a certain starter.

Klinsmann offered a glimpse into his thought process surrounding Donovan when he discussed his roster during a conference call last week. He noted his frank exchanges after Donovan returned to the team last year and spoke about how he evaluated his merits every time he linked up with the team. Read more