DONOVAN COMING OUT OF RETIREMENT
Landon Donovan announces his LA Galaxy return two years after he had retired from football as the former Everton striker is willing to help his hometown club in their bid for a sixth championship.
A little injury crisis has struck the former Galaxy player in recent weeks, and he has taken the decision after discussions with Coach Bruce Arena, to make himself available for selection.
He discussed the decision in a lengthy Facebook post: “I am very happy to announce that I have decided to rejoin my hometown team, the LA Galaxy for the remainder of the MLS season. While this decision may come as a shock to many, I want to explain how and why it was made.
“Two weeks ago, I was working as an analyst on the LA Galaxy vs. Vancouver Whitecaps match and during that game, the Galaxy suffered injuries to three players: Jelle Van Damme, Steven Gerrard and GyasiZardes. Over the next few days, Nigel De Jong was transferred to Galatasaray and news broke that Gyasi would be out for the rest of the season.
Since my retirement, I have remained in close contact with many of the staff and players on the Galaxy. I spoke with some of them that week and they jokingly asked if I was ready to make a return to the field to help fill some of the void left by the injuries and departures. I reminded them that I haven’t played a meaningful soccer game in almost two years and I certainly couldn’t fill the holes left by those players.”
Having recorded 140 goals in 308 appearance during his 10-year stint from 2005 to 2014, the 34-year old has come out of retirement to return to hometown club LA Galaxy. He hopes to help them cart home a sixth championship cup.