FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Landon Donovan going out a champion would be a perfectly scripted fairy tale.
Just don’t expect the New England Revolution to buy into that Hollywood ending for Sunday’s MLS Cup.
Although the Revs maintain that spoiling the retiring Donovan’s going-out party is the furthest thing from their minds, the goal of bringing New England their first championship would in turn sour the final chapter in the of arguably the league’s greatest player.
“All these other storylines around the game, we’re not really focused on,” said defender Chris Tierney. “Personally, I have full respect for Landon, what an amazing career he’s had and done so much for this league. That’s all stuff that we can talk about after the game.
“We’re focusing on what we have to do and preparing ourselves to play the best game we can possibly play here in the finals.”
The Revolution are well aware that if they are to get the result they desire on Sunday, they must pay close attention to the Galaxy attacker. But they aren’t about to roll over due to the magnitude of the affair.
If anything, the Revs are embracing the opportunity to square up against Donovan one last time, citing endless respect for a man who helped the game blossom in the United States over 14 years in MLS and 157 caps with the US national team.
“I’ve seen him, I’ve followed him ever since he’s been on the US team,” said Lee Nguyen, who recently earned his first US cap in seven years. “It’s been tremendous to watch how he’s progressed and how well he’s done and how much he’s done for this sport. It’s going to be an honor to play against him one last time.”
While the Revs have a healthy respect for Donovan and the significance of his career, they’re certainly not opposed to capping someone else’s tome with their own happy ending. Just ask Thierry Henry, whose MLS career was ended when New England bounced the New York Red Bulls from the Eastern Conference Championship last weekend.
“I have respect for these guys,” said New England Designated Player Jermaine Jones. “Donovan, he does a lot for US soccer and MLS. He wins already a lot of cups, he got four or five. Me and my team, we want one, and we will do everything to get it.”
