Landon Donovan: 'MLS must be taken seriously'

Former USA international Landon Donovan has said that players must take the MLS "more seriously" and turn down loan moves during the close season.

A number of players have chosen to play in Europe while the league takes a break over the winter, with David Beckham receiving criticism for spells at AC Milan during his time at the Los Angeles Galaxy.

"You have to take it more seriously now," Donovan told reporters. "There is more money involved, more attention paid to it and the fans actually genuinely care more now.

"There is more pressure and you have to really take it more seriously than you probably did 10 years ago.

"That is a good sign [that players are ruling out moves]. We are not naive and we know we have a long way to go but we are trying to get there."

Donovan played for Everton on loan from the Los Angeles Galaxy five seasons ago.