But that in and of itself this past year was not a factor in what I did for the national team every time I stepped out there, or in training, or when I stepped out there in the WUSA.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I'm not saying I didn't have ample time to recover, ample time to get to my best, I felt this year I did fine. When I stepped on the field for the national team, I was ready and able to make an impact, to score goals, to create chances.
I tried the broadcasting thing, the coaching thing, but I'll never replace the competitive feeling of being out on the field when we were players.
I've known since I went to the national team when I was very young that I was a different bird.
Leading my country out at the World Cup was something I'll never forget.
The problem with me is I always think I should've done better. I felt that after the World Cup final and through my whole career.
My background playing soccer gave me a natural advantage over many of the American-born players.
And I remember how proud I was to put on my training jersey and go out on the field. Making it back to that environment was for me my greatest moment, because somebody had told me I couldn't do it and I never gave up on myself, the game and my teammates.
There were a lot of players who worked just as hard as I did, and if you didn't, you didn't stay in the big leagues.
If you look at my career, I've never gone to a team that had fulfilled their potential.
I was not a very good football player when I started out.
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