While most of America was focusing on why Landon Donovan didn’t stay at Bayern Munich after his two and a half months on loan, many look past what he realistically took away from the experience.  Mainly the little things that can’t necessarily be taught, but learned in repetition in the company of Internationals like France’s Franck Ribery, Germany’s Miroslav Klose and Italy’s Luca Toni.

Via Guardian 

Donovan will feature for the U.S in their upcoming World Cup qualifiers against El Salvador and Trinidad and Tobago and the 27-year-old said on Monday his latest spell in the Bundesliga had made him a better player.

“It was very instructive watching the other guys on the team — how (Franck) Ribery gets the ball, how Miroslav Klose moves into space to get the ball, how Luca Toni would look to receive, those things will help me a lot,” he told reporters.

“Training at that level makes you better. Playing games at that level makes you better.”

“It was interesting with Bayern because opponents tend to sit in and defend in numbers,” Donovan said.  “There wasn’t a ton of space. It was about trying to make little advantages without having much space. That was good for me, makes me brighter and sharper.”

With Major League Soccer having a four-month off-season in the European winter, a short-term loan to Europe could become an attractive option for other players.

“The reality is that the MLS off-season is too long for most guys,” he said. “If you stop mid-October and don’t start till February that is too long.”

Image via Away