American Debate: Are Bayern The Right Team For Landon Donovan?

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Javier Mascherano-Landon Donovan - USA-Argentina (Mexsport)

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On trial for ten days in Germany, Landon Donovan has said he is finally ready to take on the challenge of a playing career in Europe.

However, he is not making it easy on himself by looking to latch on with Bayern Munich, even if it is at the personal invitation of their American-based coach, Juergen Klinsmann. The squad is one of the top clubs in Europe and demanding fans expect the German giants to compete for the league title in their country every year.

With a midfield and attacking corps that includes the likes of Lukas Podolski, Luca Toni, Miroslav Klose, Franck Ribery and Ze Roberto, its a daunting task to hope to draw enough interest to attract an offer to join the club, let alone gain any playing time or crack the starting lineup.

Yet there are American fans for whom logic goes out the window when they dream about what Donovan might accomplish if he pushes himself.

"You always ask a lot more of your more talented players," said U.S. National Team coach Bob Bradley, himself no stranger to giving Donovan an necessary nudge or two. "We've set challenges for Landon and he rises to try to meet them. We know that people expect more of him because he is capable."

However, Bradley did acknowledge that sometimes it can be detrimental for a U.S. player to land with a team that is simply too good to allow that person opportunities to develop.

"The situation at Bayern would be incredibly competitive," Bradley stated. "It's never easy to say, for any of our players who choose Europe, what's best. The competition to get on the field for some clubs is greater, but that can be a plus. In others, maybe you get on the field more, but now the pressure of winning to avoid relegation - there's different challenges."

What Donovan does offer that is a bit unique is his elusive quickness. He's small, but he can be slippery with the ball at his feet. His stamina is such that just when other players have their speed affected by fatigue, Donovan finds another gear. Even in the rigorous Bundesliga, this could be an unsettling element.

It's also not as if Donovan doesn't know what the Bundesliga requires. His previous team, Bayer Leverkusen, now sits at the top of the league table, just above Bayern Munich.

"The key for Landon is being in the right place mentally," noted another veteran of the German league, goalkeeper Kasey Keller, who now plays for Seattle. "It also helps to have Klinsmann there, because he understands things more from the American side of things. I think this is  huge opportunity and something that Landon wants to prove, that he can do it over there."

Soccer is still far enough under the American radar that many players find themselves without much pressure from either fans or media. In Europe, the top talent in the world gathers at the best clubs, so the intra-squad struggle for playing time is especially fierce.

"Over there, every week is a competition to see who has proven themselves during the week to play," said Eric Wynalda, who played in the Bundesliga as a rare American forward back in the nineties. "When you get to Friday, if you haven't proven yourself or if you had a bad week, you're not on the board. You can take one of two looks at that - 'I'm ticked off, what do I need to do?' and go do it, or give up."

The best chance Donovan might have to break in with Bayern is to face the enormity of the mission head-on. He has always been the sort of personality that seems to play a level higher when just a bit angry, a lot stubborn and driven by the single purpose of proving expectations wrong. There are moments when he just seems to will a goal to happen, and if he turns that determination into an effort to impress at Bayern, he just might block out the distractions and doubts that have plagued him in the past.

"These are all challenges that help our players," said Bradley. "It's hard for me to know for sure what the best scenario is for Landon. But he talks of new challenges and in that regard, I'm hopeful that something works out."

Andrea Canales, Goal.com USA