Donovan Is a Promise Unfulfilled

If there is one American player Major League Soccer truly covets, it’s 18-year-old Landon Donovan, the fastest-rising star on the U.S. national team.

The problem for MLS is that Donovan’s potential was recognized even earlier by clubs in Europe and he was signed to a four-year contract by Bayer Leverkusen of the German Bundesliga when he was barely 16.

That contract runs through 2003 and Bayer Leverkusen is not about to let the Redlands teenager go, at least not without being generously compensated.

It wouldn’t be so bad if Donovan were starting for Leverkusen, but he is languishing with the reserves, playing in the fourth division against opponents he characterized in an interview with Soccer America magazine last week as “probably equivalent to my high school team.”

To continue developing as a player, Donovan needs better competition. Berti Vogts, Bayer Leverkusen’s coach and a 1990 World Cup winner with Germany, recognizes that, but his senior team already is packed with top-quality players and there seemingly is no room for the youngster.

In an effort to find a solution to the problem, Rich Motzkin, Donovan’s Los Angeles-based agent, traveled to Germany last week to meet with Bayer Leverkusen coaches and officials.

“The primary issue that needed to be discussed--and which was discussed and agreed upon--was that if Landon is not going to be playing on their first team he needs to be playing at a higher level than fourth-division German soccer so he can continue to develop and progress as a player,” Motzkin said.

“They [Leverkusen officials] are in absolute agreement with that.”

Motzkin returned to L.A. in a much more positive frame of mind, believing that he might have opened a few doors for an American player U.S. national team Coach Bruce Arena believes has unique qualities.

Donovan, too, is feeling more optimistic.

“I think his mood’s better,” Motzkin said. “He was a little bit down in terms of where things were with Leverkusen, but having sat down and spent a few hours with their big brass and finding that they clearly are concerned with his development and want to work with him to find a good solution, I think he’s happier about it now.”

The solution could involve Donovan’s elevation to the Leverkusen senior team, but a more likely scenario is that he is loaned to another European club where he can be a starter, or possibly to an MLS club such as the Galaxy.

Of course, MLS, in principle, opposes getting American players on loan and would prefer to buy Donovan outright if it can. Leverkusen officials, however, aren’t likely to agree.

“They’re very high on Landon,” Motzkin said. “They definitely think Landon has a very bright future there. It’s not likely to be this year [when he breaks into the Leverkusen first team], and therefore they will need to find a club for him, although certainly somewhere down the road they believe he’s going to be a very important player for them.”

With out-of-contract Cobi Jones arriving in England today to have talks with a Premier League team, the Galaxy finds itself in a position to consider adding a player of Donovan’s stature if MLS agrees.

“From Landon’s perspective, his first choice would be Los Angeles,” Motzkin said. “It’s his home. He’s trained with the Galaxy in the past. He likes the players. He respects [Coach] Sigi [Schmid], and the Galaxy has a lot going for it with respect to [being in] the World Club Championship [in Spain in July].

“All those things favor L.A. very highly. But that being said, Landon is more interested in an opportunity just to be playing. If it’s somewhere in MLS other than L.A., that would still be OK.”

But if Bayer Leverkusen won’t sell and MLS won’t borrow, is there an answer?

“We have to come up with a creative solution.” Motzkin said, while acknowledging that financial concerns will not get in the way.

“Money is a secondary issue to him right now,” he said. “I think Landon--knock on wood--is going to have the opportunity to make a lot of money in this sport. Right now, the primary issue is getting him in the right situation so he can progress and develop, which is far more important than how much money he makes.”

Complicating all of these maneuvers is the fact that Donovan plays for the U.S. full national team and the under-20 national team, and both have a heavy schedule this year.

Donovan is in Germany now but will be recalled to the national team camp in Florida on Friday as the U.S prepares for its Feb. 28 World Cup qualifier against Mexico in Columbus, Ohio.

That game is the first of 10 final-round qualifying matches for Japan/South Korea 2002 and Donovan probably will figure in Arena’s plans for all of them.

In addition, Coach Wolfgang Suhnholz gathers the U.S. under-20 team in Florida on March 7 to prepare for its March 14-18 qualifying series in Trinidad and Tobago for the FIFA World Youth Championship in Argentina June 30-July 7. The U.S. team must get past Costa Rica, Guatemala and host Trinidad and Tobago to reach the world championship.

All of which means Donovan will be kept jumping between teams throughout the year, something that is considerably easier to do if he is in, say, Los Angeles as opposed to Leverkusen.

In light of all these complications, does Donovan believe he made a mistake in going to Germany at age 16?

“I don’t think he would say that,” Motzkin said. “He’s learned a lot and I think he would say he’s had an incredible experience. He’s learned more as an 18-year-old about the realities of life than people who go to four years of college.

“Certainly, it’s helped his professional development to get to where he is right now. But to get to where he needs to go, he needs to move somewhere where he’s on the first team.

“I think it’s an interesting lesson for young American players. You’ve got to look at every player in terms of their emotional, physical and intellectual maturity before deciding what’s the right choice.

“There are a lot of factors involved, not just on the field. Being a young person overseas by yourself can also be lonely. For every player it’s going to be a different answer.”

Motzkin said he believes Donovan’s immediate future will be resolved by the end of this month.

The teenager’s long-term future, meanwhile, remains a story waiting to unfold.