Not Christian Pulisic, But Landon Donovan Makes Tony Meola's Top 10 CONCACAF Players All-Time List

The CONCACAF region has brought incredible soccer players over the years who have made an impact on the biggest stages. USMNT star Christian Pulisic is seen as a future legend of this region.

Former USMNT goalkeeper Tony Meola raised eyebrows when he did not include Pulisic in his top 10 CONCACAF Players of all time list. Pulisic has found success in Europe, but his ranking still doesn't rank above former USMNT captain Landon Donovan.

The list primarily includes retired players with one exception.

Meola considers Donovan an 'obvious' choice to include in the list due to his performances with the national team. Pulisic is not shy of making the list in the future, but Meola explains why he doesn't include the 26-year-old.

Why did Meola leave out Christian Pulisic?

One clear reason is Pulisic's age, as Meola believes that the AC Milan star should continue to demonstrate his level in Europe. Meola values the longevity of a player's career, and Pulisic still has years ahead of him.

Meola wants Pulisic to make a significant impact for the USMNT in the World Cup, and that could be determined at next year's tournament. 

The former USMNT goalkeeper mentions that Pulisic is likely to overtake Landon Donovan and compete for a spot against Mexico's Hugo Sanchez in his best CONCACAF Players of all-time.

Meola's Best USMNT player of all time

Despite the comparisons between Pulisic and Donovan, Meola believes that Clint Dempsey is ahead of them both. Meola placed Dempsey fourth in his best CONCACAF players of all time list.

Meola gave Dempsey credit for his time in the Premier League with teams like Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur. Dempsey's scoring in three World Cups also gives him a boost ahead of other great players.

Other American players on Meola's list were Tab Ramos, Tim Howard, and Eddie Pope. Those three players were at the bottom of the top 10 list.

Meola's Best CONCACAF player of all time

Meola's choice as the best CONCACAF player of all time was a rule breaker, as the list was made of retired players. The former keeper recognized a current CONCACAF goalkeeper who reached incredible heights in Europe.

That player is Costa Rica's Keylor Navas, who won three Champions League trophies with Real Madrid. His time with Los Blancos puts him ahead of any CONCACAF player of all time in Meola's opinion.

Navas is currently 38 years old and plays for Newell's Old Boys in Argentina. He played with Costa Rica in the 2025 Gold Cup this summer but Costa Rica was eliminated by the USMNT this past weekend in the quarterfinals.