Landon Donovan’s Tactical Evolution and His Best Use for the USMNT

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: August 8, 2013

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Throughout his career, both with the United States men’s national team and his varied clubs over the years, Landon Donovan has been used in a variety of positions. According to What a Howler, Bruce Arena, former USMNT coach and Donovan’s current coach with the LA Galaxy, once said, “The problem with Landon is that he’s your best player at so many positions that you never know where to put him.”

Early in his career, Donovan was often deployed as a withdrawn striker, responsible for linking up the play between the midfield and his forward partner, usually Brian McBride.

Later, in the Bob Bradley era, while on loan to Everton in 2010 and 2012 and most recently with the LA Galaxy, Donovan has been used as a wide midfielder. These roles as a wide midfielder have varied, however. With the USMNT in Bradley’s 4-2-2-2, both Donovan and Clint Dempsey, playing in “wide” roles, were often asked to cut inside to help account for the large gaps between the two holding midfielders and the forwards.



With current head coach Jurgen Klinsmann’s use of the 4-2-3-1 in recent months, everyone assumed that Donovan’s role, if and when he were to return to the USMNT after his offseason sabbatical, would be as one of the wide midfielders. While a host of players including Graham Zusi, Eddie Johnson, Herculez Gomez, Fabian Johnson and even Danny Williams and Jermaine Jones have played wide for Klinsmann, creativity and consistent service from the wing had been lacking prior to this summer’s June World Cup qualifiers.

The spark that was needed for the U.S., according to many, was Donovan out wide.



However, when Donovan returned to the U.S. squad this summer, in the Gold Cup, he was used as both a striker and a withdrawn forward, not wide. Part of this was due to the absence of Clint Dempsey, who had manned the No. 10 role for the “A&rdquo...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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