MLS star Landon Donovan will join German champ Bayern Munich and be with the team until mid-March. "He (Donovan) will in any case now play for us until March 15," Bayern manager Uli Hoeness said. Donovan is the second Los Angeles Galaxy player to move overseas in the MLS off-season as David Beckham joined AC Milan earlier this year.Donovan led the MLS with 20 goals in 25 games for the Galaxy this past season. He is also the U.S. national team's all-time leading scorer. Donovan has not had much success in the Bundesliga in the past. Twice previously he has tried to make it in the league with Bayer Leverkusen and failed. He never got into a match from 1999-2001. He returned in 2005 but failed to score in seven league appearances and two in the Soccer Betting Champions League.
Donovan has been practicing with Bayern for the past week or so in hopes of joining the team. "He is the exceptional player in North America, including Mexico," Bayern coach Juergen Klinsmann said, "Landon knows that Europe is where it's at in football. And he has all the qualities to break through in Europe." The addition of Donovan could be an important one for Bayern. "He is an excellent player with many qualities and he is only 26," Bayern striker Miroslav Klose said. "I think that he would find himself in the Bundesliga."
Donovan is definitely excited by the opportunity to play in Europe. "It's a great opportunity for me to see how football is played here," Donovan said, "I'd like to play in Europe. In Leverkusen, I was young and I did not have the necessary maturity. I wasn't ready yet. Now, I am different person, a different player."
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It is possible that Donovan could replace Lukas Podolski, who is unhappy and wants to move on. Donovan's agent, Richard Motzkin, said it is a good spot for Landon. "It's a situation where Juergen and Landon had known each other for years," Motzkin said. "It was an opportunity to go over to train and stay fit and it made sense for everybody."
Bayern had a scrimmage game on Wednesday and Donovan scored both goals for the first team. "Landon left a very good impression," Klinsmann said. "He's been well accepted by the team."
