How do you replace a legend?
To be blunt, you don’t. Legends aren’t replaced. Or replicated. Or reincarnated.
Legends are remembered.
The moment a legend calls it a day, he is rightly relegated to the halls of history, where, if he’s lucky, he acts as inspiration for the next talented kid ready to become more than he already is.
So if you’re looking for the next
Landon Donovan
, don’t. There will never be another one. He might be generally regarded as the best American soccer player ever, but I like to add a “so far” qualifier to that. The simple truth is that the “next Landon” will be nothing like the actual Landon. He’ll look different, play differently, and act differently. He’ll have a different story.
And he’ll have a different impact.
Lifting players to legend status is always as much about us as it is about the player. Many of us of a certain generation — pre-Millennials, if you will — have spent the past 13 years being amazed by Landon’s feats, from bleach-blond, teenaged MLS Cup triumphs with San Jose to his World Cup heroics to his tumultuous, trophy-filled years with the LA Galaxy. He’s been the face of MLS and American soccer, and he’s been the protagonist in our collective soccer story. Naturally we want to exalt him for it. We want to think he’s irreplaceable. It imbues our experiences with more meaning.
Who will give that meaning to you, the next generation of North American soccer storytellers, the generation that is carrying this sport and this league boldly into its next era?
There are more than enough candidates. Some, like Sporting KC’s Graham Zusi, the LA Galaxy’s Omar Gonzalez, and New England’s Lee Nguyen are already somewhat established and just need more time and success to seal their legacies.
But others are still talented kids with great promise and much still to prove.
The LA Galaxy’s
Gyasi Zardes
(
right
) has electrifying physical tools, hard-headed determination, and a media-ready personality to match.
Crew SC’s diminutive general Wil Trapp has the potential to be a world-class holding midfielder and the boy-next-door charm that can melt TV screens.
San Jose’s whirling playmaker Tommy Thompson has shown flashes of raw brilliance and a penchant for Jerkin’ dancing.
Hell, since we’re speculating here, what about Montreal Impact rookie forward Cameron Porter, who just scored that miraculous goal the other night?
Tesho Akindele, Dom Dwyer, Luis Gil, Harry Shipp, Russell Teibert, Shane O'Neill, et cetera. So many players on the brink. Which one is going to make the leap from good to great to legend?
Answering that is impossible at this point, of course. But regardless, we do know that the next legend will not be another Landon. He’s gone. And just as records are made to be broken, legends are made to be left in the past. And then surpassed.
