Landon Donovan, manager of the San Diego Loyal, won four MLS Cups as a player for the LA Galaxy. Katharine Lotze/Getty Images
When Landon Donovan drives past his bronze statue Tuesday night at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, there will be a brief moment of nostalgia and gratitude.
Then it’ll be time to get to work.
Donovan will coach his San Diego Loyal against the team he once starred for, the LA Galaxy of Major League Soccer (stream live at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+), in the third round of the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. It’ll be the biggest match in the Loyal’s three-year history.
– U.S. Open Cup on ESPN+: Stream LIVE games, replays (U.S. only)
The second-division Loyal of the USL drew the Galaxy in the U.S. Open Cup. Donovan played the bulk of his MLS career with the Galaxy, from 2005-2014 and again in 2016. He scored a team-record 113 goals and 107 assists and led the Galaxy to MLS Cup titles four times.
“All in proper perspective, it’s really exciting,” Donovan said. “Having the opportunity, first, to travel there and play on their field, which is an iconic stadium in our country in soccer, is great for our players and very exciting. But then it’s an opportunity you may never get again as a player. There’s no guarantee you’re going to get to play players of that quality again. I think that’s the way the guys will approach it and it’s really exciting for them.”
The Loyal have played MLS teams three times in exhibitions, including losing 1-0 to Vancouver this preseason. They beat FC Dallas 1-0 in the 2020 preseason and lost 1-0 to Seattle in 2021.
This will be the first time they’ve faced the Galaxy, who play 112 miles from the Loyal’s home stadium at the University of San Diego.
“They are prohibitive favorites,” Donovan said. “They have players on their roster who make $4 million, $5 million, $6 million, versus guys on our roster who in most cases make at most six figures. It’s a whole different animal.
“The experience will be literally priceless for…
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