An apocalyptic wave of anger swept through the United States after learning that it's best player would be jettisoned for the World Cup in Brazil.

The country learned on May 22 that Landon Donovan's stellar record of 156 caps and 57 goals--and multiple key goals in the 2010 World Cup in South Africa--were not enough to get him a plane ticket to Brazil, joining the 23-man U.S. Team in the tough Group G.

Juergen Klinsmann hasn't been exactly vocal about the reasons behind the current mix of old and new players, which has made casualties of senior booters, including Eddie Johnson and Clarence Goodson. The lack of clarity has only fueled speculation.

The team, selected from 30 in the training camp last month, is built for the future, commented Los Angeles Times, citing the inclusion of young players John Brooks, Timothy Chandler and DeAndre Yedlin.

Klinsmann saying that "winning the World Cup is just not realistic" would seem to support this speculation, the report adds, with the coach's goal set low: surviving the first round would be a success, which the U.S. Team has done in the past five editions of the World Cup.

However, the report notes, the U.S. has won only four World Cup games in the last two decades in comparison to the 2006 German team Klinsmann coached, which won more games than that in just 18 days.

Yahoo Sports, on the other hand, thinks the answer is three part:  Jozy Altidore, Michael Bradley, Clint Dempsey.

It reports that the coach, who propelled West Germany to the 1990 World Cup, built a squad around the attacking triumvirate.  

The report also mentioned players that could fill in the void left by Donovan, 32, the national team's all-time leading scorer: Aron Johannsson, a 23-year-old forward who could play winger and striker, as well as provide the pace Donovan would've provided; Mix Diskerud, 23, a midfielder who could provide defensive spark in the second half, and make scoring opportunities with his exceptional passing skills and make points himself.

Chris Wondolowski's name also comes up, with Yahoo Sports banking on his hot streak at friendlies against South Korea and Mexico, where the scores were 2-0 and 2-2, respectively. 

And then there's the 19-year-old Julian Green, who many speculate directly costed Donovan his spot on the team. If he does play, the report speculates, he might be a last-minute roll of the dice--his speed may exhaust opponents in the waning moments of the match. 

The International Business Times also reported that some quarters believed Donovan has become a diminished talent, however noting that he is still among the best in America.

"For me it's a very easy equation," Team goalkeeper Tim Howard told the Los Angeles Times. "If Landon's on the field he's among our top one or two players."

It is an equation Klinsmann might not agree to though, as evidenced by his brief answer to a Brazilian journalist asking about Donovan's exclusion at a Sunday press conference: "Others were ahead of him," period.

The coach had said once: "I have to do what I believe is the right thing. I'm very strongly convinced this is the right way to go, this is the right decision that we made. And I believe in that." 

With a 2-1 win against Ghana, a team that knocked them out the past two World Cups,  the coach could be right. But they still have matches versus Germany and Portugal, which would dictate if Klinsmann 's team could meet his modest goal of surviving Round 1.

In the meantime, Donovan will be commentating for ESPN.