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"FacebookPinterest\n\n There has always been one certainty in international soccer: American players get no respect. That all changed last summer when Landon Donovan dropped jaws against global powers Spain and Brazil at the Confederations Cup. His image makeover continued in the spring during a brief stint with Everton F.C. in the English Premier League. Donovan arrived to skepticism but departed ten games later\u2014after outplaying superstars on Chelsea, Manchester United, and Arsenal\u2014to cheers of \"U.S.A.! U.S.A.!\" from Everton's supporters. \"He played against pretty much all of the best teams we have to offer, and he stood as one of the best players on the pitch,\" says Rory Smith, a reporter for London's Telegraph. \"He is a player of the utmost quality.\"\n\n We caught up with Donovan shortly after his return to his regular club, the L.A. Galaxy, to see what he thought of his newfound respect, as well as his team's chances in South Africa.\n\n How do you feel right now?\n\n I feel like I'm as good as I've ever been\u2014physically, mentally, tactically. I'm as ready for any World Cup as I could be.\n\n What did playing in England do for you?\n\n The biggest thing I got out of the experience was the knowledge that I can play against all these guys consistently. When you have that in your head, it makes you relad and confident going into games. It makes you excited to play.\n\n But does it maybe mean that you'll lose the element of surprise now? Teams know what to expect from you.\n\n I would say in the past that would be the case. I don't think we're surprising anyone these days. We're not in a place anymore\u2014and this is a good thing\u2014where we surprise teams.\n\n What did nearly winning the Confederations Cup mean to the team?\n\n That was a really important tournament for us. It's structured the way the World Cup is structured [a round-robin group phase followed by knockout brackets]. And our group was harder than any World Cup group\u2014we had Brazil, Italy, and the African champion, Egypt. So getting that experience, and coming out with success, it helped our confidence and let us know we can play with anybody.\n\n What makes the U.S. dangerous?\n\n I think our team spirit is unmatched\u2014the way we come together, our attitude and ability to keep going no matter what. That's just the American spirit. I think most of our players emplify that. When you have that, you always have a chance. And now you can add to that that we're more talented than we've ever been. Now we have some special players who can make real plays in games.\n\n Realistically, how are your chances?\n\n If we are as good as we can be each game, we should get through the group stage. And we've shown that we can compete with anyone in the world. The difficulty in the World Cup is you have to do that six or seven times in a row. I believe that on our day, and with everyone healthy, we can beat anybody. Can we do it that many days in a row? I don't know. We'll see. I think there's a real belief it's possible.\n\n Is Argentina's Lionel Messi the best player in the world?\n\n He's head and shoulders above everyone. He's on another planet.\n\n Well, at least you don't have to worry about him at the Cup.\n\n Hopefully at some point we do. That would be awesome."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.gq.com/story/la-galaxy-landon-donovan-american-superstar>