Wayne Rooney is worn out, says Landon Donovan

RDCR07

Like he would know. Here is a flop of a footballer talking about one of the games' best. I really hope England would thrash the US 5-0 and Rooney scores a hat trick. That would be like a kick in the nuts for this idiot. Rooney match fitness level is exceptional.

MarylandMUFan

Just as well since nobody wants to be there anyway. Fucking ungrateful Mexicans living in America chanting Osama. They can all fuck off back to Mexico.

As for Landon, yes he is a world class twat and even most Americans hate him. Oddly, the only people that seem to like him are Everton supporters.

204Red

Funny... I seem to recall good old LD whoring himself out to Bayern and then Everton?

Excal

Both of those happened during MLS' off-season.

Raven Blade

He hasnt said anything way out of line but he has made an assumption.

He shouldn't forget how many games Rooney has missed due to injury in the final weeks of the season. Also he will have even more time to rest and prepare for the world cup. So he may be a bit worn out but if he had been available all this time he would be even more fatigued. It looked to me that the injuries knocked Wayne out of his hot streak but he has started to warm up again and that bodes well for our chances.

choiboyx012

so it has nothing to do with his goal-scoring record against mexico? ok then

ryansgirl

Yes it just looks like mindgames and it probably is.

However, am I the only one who thinks the USA could cause an upset against England? England didn't qualify for the last European Championships (with Beckham in the side) and nobody in the media saw that coming.

They were too busy like Henry Winter writing nonsense about the 'Boys of Summer' in 4 4 2 mag and how one unnamed England player said the more successful England was, the better his success with the ladies. Given England's 'success' I'd say the unnamed player hasn't been doing much business.

As for Landon Donovan - the bloke's a good footballer and obviously under-rated in England. How many of you watched US 'soccer' before Beckham went there or even at all?

I don't see why he couldn't have a go at Beckham in a book as he already tried to talk face to face to him a number of times and was given the I don't want to know treatment.

Unless you live under a rock or are one of the Beckham Stans in the true sense who can't abide any reality check, you'll know that he lives in a glasshouse of constant security and pushyarsed advisers like the moron friend of his who got up and addressed Galaxy at their first meeting. The players didn't know who the hell this idiot was.

Beckham's 'team' brought instability and disunity to Galaxy. The demand for the captain's armband was just the first instance of arrogance. Beckham might see Donovan's revenge at the World Cup although he will be sidelined when he sees it.

Excal

Ok, leaving aside the mind game twaddle, let's look at his actual quote:

Any disagreements there? No? Moving on.

FFS has anyone in here NOT noticed that in between his injuries, Rooney hasn't been in top form the last month or two?

Rob Bowman

As Excal noted... different part of the season, mid-season vs off season.

MUFC07

I have no problem with him doing it, the problem is it was an act of despise, it looked like it and he never said it wasn't. How would you feel if Gerrard did it at OT?

Yeah, they are treated with a lot of class there, you are a perfect example of it. Ungrateful twats. Arizona is another.

Not really. I mean he is a very talented player, he is. He has scored a lot of quality goals vs us, he has. But then his fucking cuntish attitude (I will paraphrase) "where are the fucking mexicans? they are our bitches now", "there's nothing more lovely than beating those crappy losers who come to steal jobs from our people". Yeah, fuck off. It goes beyond football banter, you know?

Moriarty

There might be a few Scots, but on this side of the pond, you're very much in the minority.

I saw Brandi Chastain whip her top off. Does that count?

Who in their right mind would buy the memoirs of Landon Donovan?

It also brought them a very high profile. Most Brits thought that Galaxy was a chocolate bar before Beckham went there.

RedDevil [NC]

MMM....Milkway

brad-dyrak

It's a strange phenomenon this hatred of the US men's team by so many of your compatriots. There's always some player in particular that is the target as well. Used to be Cobi Jones, and now it's Donovan. Why does it get to you so much? How are you coming to the conclusion that it was an "act of despise"? I shouldn't think Donovan had the sand to do something like that. You've got a top side capable of competing with any other country in the world, but (aside from that last game) your squad gets so wound up with the hatred that they consistently let themselves down when playing the US. Again, I hate to generalize, but I've seen some absolutely classless shite (literally) coming from the fans also (though at least they turn up).

Get over it. You've got a great side that are perennially underrated but may well put in a great showing if they can get out of their own heads.

fishfingers15

Ryansgirl must have a terrific nose. She/He smells any shit about becks in any thread and wades in with her/his two pence (Worthless)

MUFC07

This are actually sensible words.

Yeah we are wound up, but well, loads of things have happened. I do think that when he was asked if it had been an act of despise and he didn't say no it was really pissing off, really. I also think some of our fans are cunts, every team has them, like that bender who threw a coin at bellamy or those cunts who booed Gill's son about a month ago or so. Some take it too far. I wouldn't do it myself, but I understand why Donovan gets that shit here.

brad-dyrak

Fair enough, every side's got their cretin fans.

Good luck in South Africa. You've a top side, and I'm hoping you go far. I really reckon you might, thought that first game is going to be a hell of an atmosphere.

MUFC07

Thanks, I really hope so, and yeah, the first game will be like hell.

Ferguson

So when SAF petitions for the Premier League to have a winter break because there are too many games and this results in too many injuries it's okay, but when Landon Donovan says that Rooney will be tired and knocked up after a long year then he gets abused.

I swear if I didn't know better I'd say there's a lot of anti-American feeling around this place. Nah, the rest of the world hate Americans? It couldn't be true.

Having lived a third of my life outside the United States I think I'm capable of spotting knee-jerk Anti-Americanism when I see it.

Landon is merely pointing out what people have been saying for a long time. It's just when he says it he gets attacked for it.

During the 2002 World Cup South Korea could rest and train for months in preparation for a match with French players who were playing a grueling schedule at their clubs. The success of countries like the U.S. and South Korea in 2002, and the failure of the likes of France and Portugal, was ascribed by a number of commentators to the combination of jet lag and the fact that the top players were at the end of an exhausting year.

In general I usually find Landon to be a bit of an idiot. And I never watch MLS because it's rubbish. But I don't see anything he has said that deserves the vitriol some are directing against him. Beckham coming to the LA Galaxy was patently stupid from the beginning. For Beckham to come was inevitably going to be disrespectful to the MLS players. "I'm a world-class talent who could play at any number of amazing clubs, but out of pity for your country I'm going to come and grace your third rate league with my presence." While Landon's teammates are trying to give their best and do their best as a team, Beckham is happy to go half speed by playing beneath his abilities. What kind of leader can you be for a team when it is impossible for you to share in the same struggles as your teammates because you are light years beyond them? In my eyes Landon deserves some credit for not being afraid to say what needed to be said. If Beckham doesn't respect himself enough to play with players of his own ability, how can his teammates respect him.

AlwaysRedwood

No, actually, he has explained it, numerous times. He was training and had to piss. End of story.

Get over it.

kouroux

He would know more than us that's for sure being a pro footballer and all.
Some of the comments on this thread are borderline childish.What is really wrong with what he said ?

Escobar

wow, people are touchy when it comes to Rooney

misterredmist

Donovan may be on the money - Roo may be burned out.....perhaps he should be rested until August.........

MarylandMUFan

I'll knock the xenophobic B.S. off as well. Sorry.

Widnes

But the point he made was valid, Rooney has not been rested much this season & had Berbatov performed better SAF might have given Rooney more of a break.

Think Rooney should be ok though with a months rest.

Red Defence

This one manages to say that the request for the captain's armband didn't come from Beckham, so to say it did is just an assumption. Landon Donovan's made all those adverse comments about Beckham in the book 'The Beckham Experiment', authored by Sports Illustrated writer Grant Wahl.

Sounds just like the Landon Donovan version from the same source as above.

The research journalist uses a large number of quotes from Donovan in his book.

As I said before, we have not heard the Beckham side of all this have we.

All I see at the moment are back-biting quotes from a US soccer star when a very popular World famous football star arrived to play at his club. Doesn't reflect too well on Donovan as far as I'm concerned, especially as both of these players are playing for the same team. This sort of petty sniping wouldn't be tolerated at United. Donovan would most likely have been sold......pronto!

Red Norse

ryansgirl

No, what happened was Team Beckham took over things at Galaxy that they shouldn't have so that Beckham would be cushioned from the potential (that turned into actual) problems of being paid crazy money while others on the team were earning around 12,000 US, and be able to get his own way on just about everything.

It's not in dispute that Beckham lifted their profile, that he obviously was going to get a much bigger salary etc, that he lifted merchandising sales and for a short time gave the US League attention elsewhere in the world.

Where the problem lies was the pretty much free rein his people had including the bloke (apparently Beckham's best friend now instead of Gary Nev) who jawed away to the team when he hadn't even been introduced. It was a takeover and executed in an arrogant fashion. No wonder things went downhill despite an appearance in a cup final. It undoubtedly hurt morale.

And why shouldn't Donovan express all this - he was a Galaxy mainstay and its captain til he gave up the armband under duress. He didn't want to give it up and did - why the benefit of the doubt for Beckham when the takeover was clear? You don't have to find that in Donovan's words in a book - decent sources who are paid to comment on the US game had various things to say on this before the book.

Given the huge amount of money Beckham was paid, his absences at Milan, in England training with Arsenal, the lack of holding team meetings when he was captain etc, yes he did look like somebody who was there just to grab money and publicity and go off when it suited him.

And those of you who underestimate the US team - you might be surprised at the World Cup. No doubt you assumed England would make the last European Championships, instead 'The Boys of Summer' languished at home.

Rob Bowman

Really... I think Fergie sold Beckham because of how he felt about the one .

As for being one sided did you read? These are quotes by Yallop, the coach, and Lallas the GM...

"I don't really look at who has the armband," Yallop told Donovan. "You're a leader to me, a great player. It would just be great if you could have a relationship with David and you pass it on to him."

Lalas, for his part, issued Donovan a challenge: "Let him be the captain; you be the star."


Then Byrne Beckham's best friend and manager asked...

Terry Byrne, Beckham's best friend and personal manager, in Madrid the previous spring. After a lunch at Beckham's house, the host stayed inside as Byrne walked Lalas and Yallop onto the porch. "What are you doing about the captaincy?"

Again all quoted. So you believe whatever you want to believe.

choiboyx012

simon wey, orale. viva mexico cabrones! yo no se si eres mexicano pero good luck carnal

MarylandMUFan

This is how Babel Fish translates that:

simon wey, orale. the alive Mexico cabrones! I not if you are Mexican but good luck sexual

Bearded but no genius

ryansgirl in bizarre vitriolic attack on David Beckham, with random mention of Arsenal chucked in, shocker.

Bearded but no genius

Not to mention Bayer Leverkusen, where he gave the single worst striking performance ever witnessed in the Champions League, playing alongside Berbatov at Anfield.

MrMarcello

Drogba and Terry are far worse individuals on the pitch, and Terry off the pitch as well. I know you despise Donovan because the US-Mexico ties but he's nowhere near the cunt as Drogba and Terry.

MrMarcello

If Gary Neville said something about Scousers in this manner most would be praising him on this forum.

MrMarcello

Beckham obviously came to the US for reasons other than football.

I also didn't agree with the captaincy thing. Earn it not just get it because of your name, ability and brand.

Mr Chutney

Well if Landon says so, it must be true.

UnitedRoadRed

Thanks for that well-reasoned critique. Cretin.