USA Settles for 1-1 Draw With Ecuador in Landon Donovan’s Final Match [Watch Highlights]
Team USA settled for a 1-1 draw against Ecuador in their international friendly match on Friday, which was also Landon Donovan's farewell game for the U.S. national soccer team.
Midfielder Mix Diskerud gave the Team USA a 1-0 lead after netting a 13-yard goal in the fifth minute. Team USA looked poised to escape with a 1-0 win, but Ecuador's Enner Valencia scored the equalizer in the 88th minute of the match.
Donovan, who announced that he will retire after the Major League Soccer season, wanted to score a goal in his final game for the national squad. He came close to scoring one in the 25th minute, but his shot went far off the right post.
Despite failing to score a goal in his 157th match for the USMNT, Donovan said that he was overwhelmed by the tremendous ovation he got from more than 36,000 fans at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.
"It was beyond my wildest dreams," Donovan said via USA Today. "As a human being, to feel that kind of love and support was incredible. Tonight feels like it as all worth it. The best for me was watching the video afterward and let myself go a little bit. I just allowed myself to just be with it. My life has been shaped through this sport."
Reports also indicated that Donovan talked to coach Jurgen Klinsmann to settle their differences, which allegedly started when the veteran midfielder was left off the squad that competed in the 2014 FIFA World Cup -- a conversation that was confirmed by the German coach.
"We wish him only the best," Klinsmann said. "I told him before the game that this door is always open for him. This is his team. He built this cycle, he built this team, he built so many things for US soccer. He deserves the biggest crowd, the biggest cheers. We all told him before the game to enjoy it."
Watch the highlights of the USA-Ecuador international friendly match below.
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