USA boss Juergen Klinsmann has admitted the decision to drop Landon Donovan from his World Cup squad is one of the hardest he has made in football.
The LA Galaxy star did not make Klinsmann's 23-man squad for Brazil 2014 despite being the country's all-time leading scorer and having experience at the past three World Cups.
Klinsmann told USsoccer.com that it was extremely difficult to leave out Donovan but felt it was a choice that needed to be made.
"This is certainly one of the toughest decisions - the toughest decision in my coaching career - to tell a player like him with everything he's done and what he represents, to tell him that you're not part of those 23 right now," Klinsmann said.
"I just see some other players slightly ahead of him.
"The last 10 days he did everything right. He was always positive, he took it the best way possible. So his disappointment is huge. I totally understand that. He took it very professional, because he's an outstanding professional player and he knows that I have the highest respect for him.
"But I have to make the decisions as of today. I have to make the decisions what is good today for this group going into Brazil and I just think that the other guys right now are a little bit ahead of him and I told him that. And he understands it, but obviously he's very disappointed."
Donovan was named the Young Player of the Tournament at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea/Japan, started all three group stage games at Germany 2006 before scoring three goals at South Africa 2010 as the US made it to the Round of 16. He has scored 57 goals for his country.
