The cryptic text arrives out of nowhere early on a Sunday morning, around 6 a.m. PT. Landon Donovan wants to talk. He doesn’t say about what. Another comeback perhaps? “Sadly no!” he responds.
It’s unusual for an athlete to contact a reporter cold — almost always it’s the reverse — and this particular athlete happens to be arguably the greatest American soccer player of all time. But then Donovan has always been a little bit different. And as the co-owner of San Diego’s new expansion USL team in America’s second tier, it’s in his interests to use his stature to promote the project.