Four San Jose Earthquakes named to MLS 25 Greatest

MLS unveiled “The 25 Greatest” on Wednesday, a list of the 25 “brightest stars” in the league’s first 25 seasons. And four players who played for the San Jose Earthquakes were honored:

• Jeff Agoos (played for Earthquakes 2001-04)
• Dwayne De Rosario (2001-05)
• Landon Donovan (2001-04)
• Chris Wondolowski (2005, 2009-present)

At least one of this quartet was present for all of the Earthquakes’ trophy wins — MLS Cups in 2001 and 2003, Supporters’ Shields in 2005 and 2012 — and had considerable personal honors, too. Wondo is a two-time MLS Golden Boot winner and MLS MVP in 2012, Agoos was MLS Defender of the Year in 2001, and they have all been named to MLS Best XI at least once. Add to that the top two goalscorers in MLS history all-time to date are Wondolowski and Donovan.

Interestingly, all four players have also played elsewhere in their MLS careers, and while Wondo is firmly connected to Quakes history with his Houston Dynamo tenure being completely forgettable, Agoos, DeRo and Donovan all had star turns elsewhere in addition to their San Jose success. In Donovan’s case, for example, going to the Earthquakes’ biggest rival, the LA Galaxy, turned many fans against him once and for all, but even so, these players were big-time for the Quakes and they deserve the recognition, to be sure.

What will be interesting will be to see what the next 25 years bring, to MLS and to the Earthquakes. But congrats to the players honored. This is a tremendous honor.

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