Wondo pumps brakes on retiring
SAN JOSc >> They’ve named a street in his honor. A Chris Wondolowski statue at Earthquakes Stadium cannot be far behind.
But hold off on the tributes. Wondolowski, who had planned to retire after the season, might not be finished.
“I still want to play one more year,” Wondolowski said this week, emphasizing that the decision is not his alone to make.
The Quakes (8-9-6) open the MLS Cup playoffs Sunday at top-seeded Sporting Kansas City. After going 6-3-1 to end the regular season, San
Jose hopes to surprise opponents despite being the lowest-seeded team in the Western Conference.
The team’s erstwhile captain said he wants to help San Jose continue its upward trajectory that has begun under coach Matias Almeyda. Wondolowski, Major League Soccer’s alltime leading goal scorer, said the building blocks of sustained success start with the 1 p.m. kickoff.
“Speaking five years down the road I am not going to be in that picture so I want to make sure I can help the club in a role I can play,” he said.
Wondolowski, who turns 38 in January, said he asked general manager Jesse Fioranelli and Almeyda to hold off on talks about next year until after the season.
“But I can’t help but look forward and look toward the future because it is not a sure thing,” he said.
Wondolowski finally realized what everyone else has seen as the topsy-turvy MLS season unfolded: the deadly striker from Danville does not look close to being done with one of the most remarkable careers in American soccer history.
Turns out Wondolowski was premature in announcing 2020 would be his final season. He could not have known at the time 2020 would produce one of the country’s most challenging episodes with the novel coronavirus shutting down sports and many other activities.
But Wondo, as he is affectionately known in the soccer world, wondered if he still had the flair to compete at a high level while starting the season on the bench.
“That was always the concern,” Wondolowski said. “I never want to be a burden.”
Wondolowski has a teamleading seven goals despite reduced minutes in an abbreviated season. It ended a league-record of 10 consecutive seasons of scoring 10 or more goals. But Wondo might have kept the streak alive had he been in games to take more penalty kicks.
Now, his goal production has coincided with the Quakes’ strong 6- 3-1 finish heading into the postseason. Wondolowski has scored in two of the past three games as San Jose has qualified for its third playoff appearance in 11 seasons
as the Western Conference’s lowest-seeded team.
“That is why I wanted to wait it out until the end of this year to see how everything goes,” Wondolowski said. “To make sure I can still produce. Also, be in the picture with the Quakes.”
Another reason to return is to give fans a full season to celebrate Wondolowski’s career. The Earthquakes have not allowed spectators inside their stadium for home games after MLS temporarily shut down in midMarch because of the exploding COVID-19 outbreak.
“It is something that I do want — to play for my fans one more time,” he said.
Wondolowski, who represents himself in contract negotiations, said he plans to leave all options open. He said he could become a free agent if the Earthquakes do not re-sign him.
Fioranelli and Almeyda have created a pipeline of young players as the backbone of the Quakes’ future. But they also have seen what a galvanizing force Wondolowski has been with the team.
Ea rlier this sea son Almeyda said he wished he could have coached Wondolowski a decade ago, Wondolowski, by the way, feels the same about Almeyda, he said.
“Today seeing him train at 37 with the desire and enthusiasm he has, it’s remarkable,” the Argentine coach said. “And I highlight his attitude, his desire, his energy. Age doesn’t matter. It’s the love with which you do things.”
Teammates say Wondolowski is the last player to walk around the locker room as something special with his league-leading 166 goals, which are 16 more than No. 2 Landon Donovan.
Jackson Yueill, who wears
the captain’s band when Wondolowski is not on the field, would love more time with Wondo.
“You can see age has no effect on him,” Yueill said. “He has shown he can still score. He’s still one of the most vital pieces of our team all the time and I think he can keep doing it.”
Yueill, 23, said he has tried to mold his captaincy on Wondolowski’s team-first mindset.
“No matter if he is on or off, he has a positive attitude,” Yueill said. “He’s always pushing teammates and always supporting everyone. At the end of the day, you have that karmic ability when you step on the field to score.”
Wondolowski said he was not so much wrestling with his future, “but it is one of those where I was able to prove to myself. Coming into this year I wanted to see whether I can handle it physically and still be part of the club.”
A father of two daughters, Wondolowski said the accumulation of knowledge since his professional start in 2005 is beginning to pay off.
“That’s why I feel the urge to keep going because I wish I had known then” what he does now.
“I feel so much confidence in my touch, my vision, just how the game has slowed down,” he said. “It’s just now all coming together. I do feel comfortable on the ball. I wish I had that about 10 years ago.”
Wondolowski, a former Chico State star, was plucked out of an East Bay tryout to join the Earthquakes as the 89th of 96 players drafted in 2005.
He spent the first five years playing in the onetime MLS Reserve League where former teammates have recalled how intense
and competitive he was as if the games mattered.
Wondolowski is just as competitive 16 seasons later. Focusing on his diet for the first time has helped, he said.
T he dietar y changes
came during the novel coronavirus quarantine. Wondolowski said his wife, Lindsey Wondolowski, led the way. The family researched healthy cooking. They counted calories and checked labels for saturated
fat
He said he also has cut down on beer.
But don’t worry. The Quakes will have other ways to toast the prospect of playing with Wondo for another year.