Landon Donovan: The American Andres Iniesta

I know what you're thinking. How in the world is an AMERICAN footballer anything like such a great as Andres Iniesta?!

When you think about it however, Donovan and Iniesta are really very alike. Both have a receding hairline, both are short, and both know Spanish—they even wear the same boots!

But there's more to it than the plain old obvious.

Their playing styles mirror each other. Donovan did play as a striker in the past, but now he plays as a winger in midfield, as does Iniesta.

Both Donovan and Iniesta are technically skilled. Both are explosive forces, and both are the creative forces of their respective teams. 

Although both have good scoring and finishing abilities, they both rack up more assists than goals. Donovan and Iniesta are both very unselfish. They seem to find more joy in assisting than scoring goals. 

Both play on the best club in their league, and both are highly acclaimed for their club exploits. 

However, the two were not always so favorably comparable.

While one was basking in the glory of winning a Champions League, the other toiled away for teams that were not at all respectable and had to deal with the criticism of so many.

In the past, Landon Donovan has been deeply criticized for his inconsistent performances for both club and country. Many claimed that Donovan was great against the minnows, but failed to show up against the giants.

These critics pointed out that Donovan, despite starring in a huge role for the U.S. in the 2002 World Cup, barely showed up in Germany 2006.

They also point to the failure of Donovan to score the final penalty in the penalty shootout against Pachuca in the 2007 SuperLiga. If Donovan had scored, he would have sent his L.A. Galaxy to the FIFA Club World Cup.

He had another glaring penalty shootout miss against Real Salt Lake in the 2009 MLS Cup final.

There were the few loyal, who believed that Donovan was the best American soccer player ever, despite all of these slip-ups. These people pointed to Donovan's successes for his club and his 2002 World Cup exploits. 

However, for the most part, many despised Donovan's inability to step up when it really mattered. 

All of this changed in 2009, though, when Donovan led his national team to a second-place finish in the FIFA Confederations Cup. Donovan was by far the best and most consistent player on the U.S. national team in that tournament.

Not only did he contribute major assists (against Egypt) and goals (against Italy and Brazil), but he was also the hardest worker—he covered 36 miles through the course of the entire tournament, more than any other player.

He followed that up with impressive performances on loan to English club Everton, where he helped the club beat such big clubs as Manchester United, Manchester City, and Chelsea, and also tie with Arsenal.

Donovan returned to the Galaxy after his loan and helped his team run riot in the MLS. He contributed no less than nine assists and a goal in nine games.

Since then, Donovan has traveled to Princeton to train with the U.S. men's national team for the upcoming World Cup.

Many youngsters will look to the veteran for guidance, just as many look to Iniesta. 

Donovan has finally been able to step up to the big occasion, like Iniesta. 

Both are the engines of their respective clubs and countries. And both will be looked by people around the world to step up to the big occasion this year in South Africa. 

Donovan has not only silenced the big-time critics, but has also proved that he, and Americans, can play and be compared with the best in the world.