The LA Galaxy manager Bruce Arena has said that he is extremely confident that the star striker Landon Donovan will return to the team at the start of the new season. The 30-year-old recently claimed that he will be taking an indefinite break from the game, while also questioning the possibility of taking part in the 2014 FIFA World Cup if the US qualify for this tournament. This has led to suspicions that the 30-year-old will be announcing a premature retirement from football. Donovan has been playing non-stop football for the last few seasons, as he has spent the break period at in the MLS on loan at the Premier league club Everton.

In his quest to achieve a lot in the game, Donovan has not been utilising the break from the MLS season. Donovan recently helped LA Galaxy achieve triumph in the 2012 MLS cup. There have been suggestions that he would announce his international retirement shortly. The US national team manager Jurgen Klinsmann has said that he will give Donovan all the time he wants to decide on his future. Bruce Arena, though, believes that Donovan is likely to come back to the LA Galaxy team at the start of the new 2013 season despite missing the first day of pre-season.

“We’ve given him a little bit more time off. He’s definitely playing this year, just working out a return date that makes sense for all of us. I thought he was going to come back, I think he just needs an extended leave of absence. He’s had a couple years that have taken its toll. Donovan, like any player, needs the right time of preseason to get ready to play. The longer he takes off, it’s going to take him a longer period of time to be ready to play,” said Arena.