Our live chat with Wynalda was hosted by Yahoo! Chat.

Timehost: Hello everyone and Welcome to TIME World Cup's first live chat. Our guest tonight is Eric Wynalda, one of the U.S. men's national soccer team's most potent offensive weapons. Eric is currently recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his knee performed on Thursday. I'm sure we'll talk about that tonight. Wynalda has a string of firsts to his credit. He was the first American to play in the German Bundesliga, and scored 9 goals in his first 10 games there.

Timehost: Wynalda also scored the first-ever goal in the MLS, in a 1-0 San Jose victory over D.C. United. Finally, he became the first American -- and perhaps the first human -- to share the front line with Ronaldo and Gabriel Batistuta - - in a FIFA all-star game at the World Cup Draw.
Welcome, Eric, and thanks for joining TIME World Cup tonight.

Eric Wynalda: It's good to be here.

Timehost: To begin, can you tell us about the surgery you had on Thursday, and what the prognosis is? How is your knee feeling?

Eric Wynalda: It was identified as a minor lateral meniscal tear. It required arthroscopic surgery, coupled with what is called a subluxation of the fibula from its attachment to the tibia. It's fairly painful, however the prognosis is good. I had the surgery on Thursday, and I'm already up walking. 4 to 6 weeks from now, I'll be up and playing again.

Timehost: We've seen and heard May 16 as a possible date to return to action. Do you think you'll be on schedule to play, and will you play for your club, the national team or both?

Eric Wynalda: I dont like to set a date personally. My goal is to take this day to day. Whether I play in the game on the 16th or the other two remaining scheduled national games, is yet to be seen, At least I hope to be able to play one more time for the class before I report to the national team. And I expect to play in two of the three remaining national games before we go to France.

Timehost: Do you think this injury could at all prevent you from making the World Cup?

Eric Wynalda: At first, it was a major issue, whether I would be able to participate in the World Cup, but the doctors have assured me that I will be able to recover in time -- and also have adequate time to train and play in some exhibition matches before the World Cup. I am very motivated, obviously, to get healthy and be ready for France. Therefore, I expect to be there.

Timehost: That's very good news for you, and for U.S. fans! Okay, let's move to some of the great questions from our audience... I'll preface this one by noting that Wynalda played for the U.S. in both the 1990 and 1994 World Cup tournaments...

Oasis_ufos asks: What was it like to represent your country and to play in the World Cup?

Eric Wynalda: For a soccer player, there's no greater feeling than to represent your country in a World Cup. It's something that I dreamed about as a kid. I consider it to be one of my greatest accomplishments to be a part of both '90 and '94. This World Cup is very special because we bring a lot more pride in ourselves to the tournament, and the expectations are much greater, and we hope that we can make our fans proud.

Timehost: What single memory stands out in your mind from the last two World Cups?

Eric Wynalda: Exchanging jerseys with Roberto Baggio in 1990. And our conversation and how he felt bad for me that I received a red card in my first match. And secondly, being congratulated by Michael Platini on my goal against Switzerland in 1994. Those are both very fond memories to me. However, my greatest memory is the crowd's reaction in the Rose Bowl to the Americans defeating Colombia 2-1.

JayquanBadu asks: Eric..when you where younger what made you decide to play soccer instead of playing Basketball or foot ball or a another more accepted sport.

Eric Wynalda: To be honest, other sports bore me. I was very bored with baseball. Football was always a collaboration of memorizing plays. I never felt I could get involved enough in basketball. In the sport of soccer, much different from any other game, you get to show your personality in the way that you play. The same thing, never, ever, happens twice.

Magguest_1eb940200 asks: Do you think that soccer will ever reach the popularity of baseball in north America?

Eric Wynalda: What I have noticed in more recent years is that our youth dictates our attitude towards sports. When I was a kid, my father took me to see the Dodgers, especially when they played against the Cardinals, because of where he grew up. And I think he was trying to relive his own memories as a child with his father. Soccer cannot at this point compete with that kind of tradition. However, kids today play soccer. And kids today take their parents to see what they want to see, and not what their parents want to see. And I'm very proud to say that soccer players, unlike baseball players, with a few exceptions of course, go the extra mile for their fans. Especially the kids who finally have a chance to have role models in soccer. I hope that if success for soccer in this country means that it makes its players get further from their fans -- then I hope it never achieves the status of the other games.

Robyn_w_98 asks: Do you live your life around soccer?

Eric Wynalda: I did not choose soccer -- soccer chose me. I feel very lucky to have achieved the status that I have in the game of soccer. And I believe that I now have an obligation to help the growth of this beautiful game in my country. Without a doubt, soccer is my life, and always will be.

Smooth811 asks: Are you planning on staying with a MLS team or is Europe in your future?

Eric Wynalda: I believe that I will finish my career in the MLS. However, if some other opportunities come my way in the next couple of years, similar to those that I have turned down in the last two, I may pursue the opportunity to go back to Europe after the World Cup.

Timehost: Eric, we've been talking a lot about you personally, but let's talk about the MLS and the national team for a bit...

Timehost: What has the MLS done right in its first two years? And what needs to be done in the next two years to build on that?

Eric Wynalda: A very good question. The answer to that question is very simple. The most successful team in the MLS, DC United, thus far has its own training facility, with the head offices located within the sports complex, a great team in its own stadium with no competition from other sports in that stadium. All the things that DC are doing are a perfect model to the rest of the League. And the first two years they have put out a great product, with good players, good personalities, and a few stars to make up a perfect scenario -- not the least of which includes a good coach. I believe that putting a good product on the field is the best way to cater to the needs of your fans. And that's what they've been able to achieve. Of course in the first two years the League has made mistakes, but these were all growing pains. With the coverage that soccer receives right now and the growing involvement of television ABC Sports and ESPN2 to be exact, the sport is becoming more and more accessible to the fans. That's very important. It will take a lot of time and a lot of money to turn soccer into what it has to be to be successful. But I believe in the long run, it will be far greater and accepted in years to come.

Timehost: Well, by far, most of our audience wants to know about the U.S. team and the World Cup, so let's go to some questions on that...

Paulw_3 asks: Eric, do you prefer to run up front with Joe-Max Moore or would you like to see yourself and Wegerle or Ernie Stewart? I'm a fan of Joe's so I'm hoping you two are our attackers in France.

Eric Wynalda: Well I am also a fan of Joe. And I believe that if I make a comment on whom I prefer, that would give the wrong impression. The US team has enjoyed a lot of success when Joey and I have played up front, but I think that Roy Wegerle with his experience, speed, and overall intelligence on the field, it will be a difficult decision for Steve Sampson to make when it comes to who plays and who sits. You have to remember that we are not the only three forwards on the team. Brian McBride, Roy Lassiter, and even Cobi Jones are making strong pushes to be a part of that lineup.

Timehost: Last week, U.S. soccer was somewhat shocked to hear that the team captain, John Harkes, had been cut from the national team due to differences with coach Steve Sampson... Our question follows up that news:

Todd9876 asks: How has the team been affected by Steve Sampson's decision to cut John Harkes?

Eric Wynalda: I think all of us were shocked at the decision. Because of how much John Harkes has done for this country as well as the perception of an American player in Europe. I have no idea how the team will react. The team is right now in Austria. And I have not yet spoken to any of the players on that trip. I played phone tag with Steve Sampson, but I still have not spoken to him about this issue. I have, however, spoken to John on several occasions. And he has handled this decision with an enormous amount of class. Not until I speak to Steve personally about his decision do I feel it's fair to comment on my opinion of his decision. So I'll let you know when I hear from him. But until then I think it's fair to both of them that I hear both sides of the story.

Timehost: As a regular teammate of Harkes', how will his absence affect the team's play on the field? Does this offer opportunities for other players to shine?

Eric Wynalda: This was, from what I understand in his comments, Steve's intention -- to create more freedom for other players. John is, and always will be, the most experienced player that we had. Anyone who is filling the shoes of John Harkes has their work cut out for them. Blissguest_18bc40809 asks: How did the national team manage to beat Brazil? What does the team need to do to keep up that type of play?

Timehost: For the three people on Earth who haven't heard, the U.S. beat Brazil, the reigning World Cup champion, 1-0 in the semifinal of the Gold Cup earlier this year.

Eric Wynalda: We had a good game plan.

Eric Wynalda: We had a phenomenal goal keeper, an incredible team effort, and Preki's left foot. It's as simple as that. As for how we will continue to attempt to achieve that level of play, we need to be consistent with our effort and sticking to our team plan. Without a doubt the U.S. finally has the ability to beat anybody on any given day. We now have to embrace that responsibility and use it as a motivating factor to get better. After we beat Brazil, we got complacent. So we learned a very valuable lesson, and we won't let it happen again. Stamm43 asks: When the US team plays Iran, will the play be more intense because of the bad political relationship between the two countries?

Eric Wynalda: I believe that this game against Iran is a wonderful opportunity for the sport of soccer to bring together two nations who have always had bitter relations with each other. And that's the beauty of soccer and the World Cup. I believe it will be a wonderful game, just as intense as any other game, and just as important as any other game. But this is our opportunity to show the Iranian people that we are simply playing the sport of soccer and that there are no grudges felt or ill-will against their team, simply because of political problems that we've had in the past. I hope we win, of course, but I see t he diplomatic implications and all our players are very aware of that.

Timehost: Two questions here, one theme:

Smooth811 asks: Do you except the US national team to do as well as they did in the last World Cup?

FBI_Agent_86 asks: When will the USA win a World Cup?

Eric Wynalda: In 1990, we played three games and went home. In 1994, we played 4 games and stayed home. In 1998, I expect our team, I hope that our team, plays at least 5 games, and I believe that it's within our reach. To win the World Cup is the ultimate, and to ask the teams that are even expected to win, when will they win again, they cant answer that. In soccer, anything can happen.

Timehost: Five games would take the United States to the quarter-finals in France, by the way.

Eric Wynalda: I'm very aware of that. Let's face it. In the United States we only really, truly support the sports that we feel we're the best at.

Timehost: I guess I was noting that for our audience. To some, who are used to watching U.S. Dream Teams, that may sound like a mediocre performance. What could you say to that?

Eric Wynalda: We call it the World Series, but it's not really the World Series, for example. We have an arrogance when it comes to sports, all sports, except soccer. Not until we win on a consistent basis in top level competitions will the American people embrace the sport of soccer fully.

Timehost: Eric, my final question for you is this: For someone who has never won a game in a World Cup, what is the feeling? How could you describe the feeling of winning for the rest of us?

Eric Wynalda: When you're representing so many people as when you play for the US, when we are able to win and change the emotions of so many people, you have such an enormous sense of pride in your accomplishment. There are no words to describe what it feels like to win a game in the World Cup, or to score a goal for that matter. It's not a mystery that soccer is probably the most emotional game that exists. And I think that shows in the faces and the expressions, and the reactions that take place in the World Cup. I'm sorry I can't answer your question -- it's just an indescribable feeling, and we'll try to make you proud in France in '98.

Timehost: I think that's actually a terrific answer. Thank you very much, Eric for joining us. And thanks to the audience for staying with us as well. That's all the time we have tonight, but please check out TIME World cup at www.time .com/worldcup for full coverage of the 1998 World Cup. Thanks again, Eric!

Eric Wynalda: Thanks for having me. Just support soccer, that's all I can ask.

Timehost: From one fan to another, I second that thought! That concludes our chat. Thanks for joining us, and good night.