The Campaign for Brazil

     It was less than a year ago that MLS soccer fans were pessimistic about Landon Donovan returning to the LA Galaxy. Many doubted him because of his age (30 at the time) and questioned whether or not Father Time has finally caught up to him. Jurgen Klinsmann even made the decision of leaving him off the World Cup Qualifying squad earlier this year. This was a bold move as Landon was arguably a face of U.S. Soccer after his performance at the World Cup in 2010. But Jurgen told Landon that the only way to be on his squad, He'd have to give Coach Klinsmann the BEST Landon Donovan. Earlier this year he just wasn't meeting expectations. 

     All this criticism that Landon faced for the past year was fuel added to a small fire. This fire has finally bursted and shined in this year's CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament. Many speculators will say that Donovan is only getting lucky because most squads are using their 'B' squads or because the Confederation consists of teams below par when it comes to the international level. But Landon Donovan is finally proving he's coming back into form that we were accustomed to seeing. Simply look at his stat-line in the tournament, 3 goals and 6 assists. This means he's pretty much accounted for 9 goals for the U.S. in just this tournament. Talk about an outright MVP of this year's Gold Cup. 

     He's making a statement by his play this summer. It's not an accident or a fluke that he's playing this way. He is finally telling Jurgen Klinsmann that he has accepted his challenge to give him 'the best Landon Donovan ever.' Like Grant Wahl said in his Sports Illustrated article, "When you don't set a ceiling on what you ask for, there's no limit to what you can do." This was Coach Jurgen's strategy the whole time to get the best of what Donovan has left. This only sets up for a very much anticipated final against Panama. How will Landon Donovan close out this summer's tournament?