CARSON, Calif. – Landon Donovan played less than 10 minutes in the LA Galaxy’s 4-2 win over Orlando City SC, but his impact was felt all over at StubHub Center on Sunday.
Just days after ending his nearly two-year long retirement, Donovan was on the game day roster for Galaxy’s pivotal match against Orlando. Although not in the starting lineup, Donovan drew considerable attention as Donovan banners and jerseys—both with No. 10 and No. 26—peppered the crowd.
After the Galaxy notched their fourth goal of the match, chants of “We want Landon” and “Oh, Landon Donovan” rose up from the capacity crowd of 27,167. Their cheers were ultimately answered in the 85th minute when Donovan replaced Raul Mendiola and finally took the field for the first time since the 2014 MLS Cup.
“It was really enjoyable. It was fun to be back in the stadium with the atmosphere and the crowd and being with all the guys again,” Donovan said. “Great to win obviously and that made the day a lot better. I realize I have a long way to go. I might have played five minutes or so and maybe completed one pass. It makes you realize it’s a whole different level. I have to get myself going again so I can really contribute because not every week is going to be a charity five or ten minutes.”
As memorable of a moment as Donovan’s return was, it very nearly did not occur as Donovan and the Galaxy training staff waited until the 11th hour to decide his availability after just two days training with the full squad.
“We were right on the fence until last night whether or not it made sense even to be on the bench,” Donovan said. “I think we all agreed that if we could just get the first few minutes out of the way – for a lot of different reasons, the PR part, the media part, the ‘me just getting my mental understanding of the game again’ and just kind of get that out of the way – so we can focus on what we want to focus.
“Thankfully it worked out tonight and now it’s time to get all that stuff out of the way and go try to win a championship.”
After the victory, Galaxy head coach Bruce Arena admitted that Donovan still has a ways to go before he can start earning regular minutes for his team.
“You see he has a long way to go; he’s on the treadmill now [after the game]. It’s going to take a while; we knew that ” Arena said. “Probably no other circumstances would have allowed me to play him today, but I wanted him to get out there and reward the crowd for showing up and all. It helps Landon see how far he has to go.”
With the hubbub surrounding his return finally over, Donovan believes it’s time for him to get back on the training field and become a contributor.
“I need to get fit. I came into a game where both teams were exhausted, and I was the slowest player on the field. So I need to get myself ready to compete in a real way,” Donovan said. “Bruce and the coaching staff need to know that when they put me in, it can mean something. So tonight worked out well. But I need to be able to contribute.”
Adam Serrano is the LA Galaxy Insider. Read his blog at LAGalaxy.com/Insider and contact him atLAGalaxyInsider@Gmail.com
