Omar Abdulrahman is the best soccer player in the UAE. He might be the best soccer player in the Middle East.

He is good enough that whenever foreigners see him play, they inevitably ask: “When are you going to Europe?”

Now and then, Omar has seemed vaguely interested in that concept. He trained for a few weeks with Manchester City, after the 2012 London Olympics, where he impressed. But then he came home.

And he has never budged, even as the years are beginning to pile up; 23 is not old in real life, but it’s approaching mid-career age in modern soccer, and Omar, 23, has never played for anyone but Al Ain, the UAE’s most successful club.

And it now appears he will not be playing for anyone else anytime soon, either. He had a press conference today to talk about his decision to extend his contract at Al Ain through the 2017-18 season.

For the three additional seasons he signed up for … he reportedly will be paid $3.8 million per season.

So, he is a guy who is getting a lot of money, is a superstar inside the country and is comfortable in his current situation.

So, does that make him the UAE’s Landon Donovan?

Yes.

And no.

Yes, in that Omar anticipated he might not be happy playing outside his home country. Yes, in that he feels as if he is making enough money to stay home. Yes, in that some outsiders are disappointed he isn’t going to take on the challenge of a stronger league.

Yes, in that family seems to be a significant issue. Landon hated being far away from his parents and his siblings, including his twin sister. Omar is believed to live, still, with his parents and most of his siblings, who includes three brothers.

Is Omar Abdulrahman the UAE’s Landon Donovan?

No, in that Landon did actual time in Europe — in Germany and England and didn’t mind dabbling with football/fussball on his own terms (his two winter loans to Everton of the English Premier League went well). But, no, in that he tried it and it wasn’t for him.

No, in that Landon quit Bayer Leverkusen to return to the U.S. and Major League Soccer at a time — 2001 — when the future of the sport was anything but sure. The following season, the league contracted by two teams, to 10. Landon said he wanted to help the sport succeed in the U.S. And he did that. When he retired, end of last season, MLS was on course to reach 20 teams, compared to the nine

Omar Abdulrahman will not have an impact on the future of the UAE league. It was widely popular before he was born. It will continue to be popular, after he is gone.

And, just saying, I think Omar Abdulrahman would have a far more difficult time playing outside the U.S.

When we first wrote about Omar’s new contract, our reporter Amith Passela spoke to a local soccer commentator, Kefah Al Kaabi, who cut to the heart of the matter.

“It was not a surprise and we knew all the time he wasn’t leaving anywhere,” Al Kaabi said.

“An Emirati player of the caliber of Omar will not be released by the club in the first place. Secondly, it is very hard for an Emirati player to adapt to the lifestyle outside their homes.

“Omar is a superstar in the country and he won’t enjoy the same status elsewhere. Who will leave such luxury and leave to another land and be nobody? So there was no doubt where he was going to remain.”

Those who were always disappointed that Landon Donovan did not commit himself to making it Europe will hear some echoes in those quotes. I can see how that would be. Neither felt compelled to live up to someone else’s ambitions for him.

But Landon went home to a league that very much needed him. The Arabian Gulf League likes having Omar Abdulrahman around, but it doesn’t need him.

Landon would not have been the first American to make his way in a big European league. Omar might have been.

And Landon was tested against the best in three World Cups and helped the U.S. advance to the knockout stages twice. Omar’s biggest competition has been an Asian Cup.

Omar could become the UAE’s Landon Donovan if he signed with a European club, did enough there to suggest he could survive and got his team to a World Cup — and past the group stages.

He has a ways to go to be the country’s LD20.