PHILADELPHIA — Landon Donovan turned inward, trying to find out who he is.
He was a joy-filled 20-year-old in 2002 who helped lead the United States to its best World Cup finish in 72 years, filled with optimism and thoughts that one day he and his teammates could lift the gold trophy above their shoulders.
Four years later, it was more like world on his shoulders than the World Cup, his mind weighed down by the expectations his precocious talent had created.
Soccer had become the burden of his life instead of the passion.
Now, two weeks from his third World Cup, he sounds at peace. With the demands, with his talent, and with himself. It's been a long road. [...]