While not shocking news given the dismal start of the US MNT in the hexagonal qualifying for WC 2018, it is news worth delving in to. Many supporters of the MNT have been calling for head coach Jurgen Klinsmann to be fired for a long time. In fact a fair number of supporters didn’t like his hiring in the first place, pointing out that being a world class player doesn’t necessarily make you a great coach and that Klinsmann had accomplished very little as a coach. Well whether he was a good hire or not is certainly open to debate but its now pretty pointless. He’s gone and its time to move on. Given the current status of our qualifying efforts I think the timing was correct and the hire was correct.

(You can discuss this on the BSL Board here.)

Hiring a new coach at this point gave that guy a chance to establish his plans, watch some key games, and move toward the next camp in January (more on that later). The timing put the new coach in place at a critical time to get the team back on track and ready for the next set of qualifying matches in March. Clearly time was of the essence. And probably equally important was that the next coach was in the best position to right the ship and get on with qualifying. Meaning a coach that has a good handle on the current player pool and what it takes to qualify in CONCACAF.

So the USSF made the correct move. Welcome back Bruce Arena!

Bruce Arena – a little history

If not the most, certainly one of the most successful coaches in US soccer history. With five NCAA championships with UVA during his 18 years there, five MLS cup trophies, and two Gold Cup trophies and taking the MNT to the quarterfinals of the 2002 WC (losing to Germany although they got robbed in that game and were the better side). Arena has guided the MNT to 71 wins, by far the most of any coach. No American coach has a stronger resume than Bruce…..oh and he was a goalkeeper during his playing days (bias alert!).

Some detractors have argued that the US needs a higher profile coach with high end international experience to take the program to the next level. And they have a point. However, given the current situation I think Arena is the perfect choice for three reasons.

1. There is simply no coach out there, at this level, that knows the player pool. Bruce will hit the ground running (in fact he already has visiting Europe this past weekend) and has instant credibility with the players.

2. He knows what it takes to qualify in CONCACAF. While on the surface this seems to be an easy task there are some issues in the region that can crop up and bite you if you are not prepared.

a. CONCACAF officiating is suspect at best. The level of officials is fairly weak. Watch the remaining matches and determine for yourself if there is any bias against the MNT.

b. The away pitches generally are lousy…the term cow pastures comes to mind. While the teams in the Hex generally have somewhat better pitches they still leave something to be desired. Playing on a bumpy and hard field (or a mud hole if its been raining) leads to strange results.

c. The opposing fan bases hate the MNT. They go to great lengths to disrupt every aspect of the team’s visit. From being disruptive outside whatever hotel the team is staying at (if you are trying to sleep think a hotel in the French Quarter in New Orleans during Mardi Gras), to demonstrations along the bus route from the hotel to the stadium ensuring a 15 minute bus ride is more like two hours, to throwing things at the players during the match. This isn’t grousing. Its reality and the coach needs to be able to get his team through this mess to play at their best. Not an easy task.

3. Arena’s age makes him perfect for the job. He is 65 years old. He has the experience to deal with the position yet still has plenty to offer in terms of knowledge and passion. But at the end of the WC 2018 in Russia it will be easy for him to retire and let USSF bring in the coach to take them to the next level. And don’t put it past Bruce to do that in Russia!

How does he proceed?

As mentioned, Arena hit the ground running. Arena held his first news conference with the US soccer media last Tuesday and it was enlightening to say the least. He was at the Montreal – Toronto game on Wednesday, flew to Germany for the weekend where he saw Dortmund in a dominant win. Rising start Christian Pulisic didn’t start but came on in the 80th minute and was a terror. Arena had to be impressed by that showing. Then presumably he will be at the MLS Cup.

During the media session there were several points made that give us at least an indication of where he expects to focus during the next few months leading up to the next round of qualifiers in March. First he said he believes that they must find a better passer in the midfield to direct the attach. The follow on being that he sees Michael Bradley as a defensive midfielder. One who still has the ability to press forward but whose primary responsibility is to defend. Frankly this is spot on. Bradley is best suited for that role today and come 2018 may or may not even be in the starting XI. He then explained that he see’s the current player pool at around 50-60 players. This is a much broader perspective than that of the previous coach, whose disdain of the MLS was no secret. He expects to call in about 30 players for the camp in January.

The upcoming camp, nicknamed Camp Cupcake since its to set the stage for a couple of friendlies but the real purpose is to get a look at some fringe players that may earn a call in to the March camp. Camp Cupcake typically only has players from the MLS and Scandanavian leagues that are in downtime then. Rarely are European based players called in. This gives a lot of edge players the chance to come in and demonstrate why they should be included in March and hopefully in the rest of qualifying and WC 2018.

So lets look at what we might see at Camp Cupcake.

Goalkeepers

With Tim Howard out with an injury, the expected call ups look to be Bill Hamid, Ethan Horvath, and David Bingham. Hamid once was the next heir apparent but the injury bug hit him and for some reason was not much in favor with Klinsmann. All three of these keepers had good 2016 club seasons. I expect Arena’s experience with goalkeepers will help grow one or two of these guys to begin to take over duties for the MNT.

Defenders

Keegan Rosenberry, Robbie Rogers, Matt Besler, Steve Birnbaum, Walker Zimmerman, Justin Morrow, and even DeMarcus Beasley. There is one position on the field where I think the US must find a stable player and that is left back. Fabian Johnson is fine back there but he is so much better at an attacking midfield position. Time for the coach to find an honest left back…..and no I don’t think going back to Beasley is the answer. May be a short term fix for March but he is 34 and for me, too small to play left back at the international level.

Midfielders

This is the area on the field where the MNT team is deep and talented. This is where Arena will look to build for the rest of qualifying and for 2018. Look to see Michael Bradley, Dax McCarty, Wil Trapp, Alejandro Bedoya, Kelly Acosta, Jermaine Jones, Darlington Nagbe (perhaps a new chance for him), Cristian Roldan, Sacha Klejstan, Benny Feilhaber, Lee Nguyen, along with several other younger players. This is a good group of talent and doesn’t even include Pulisic or Johnson!

Forwards

Really don’t expect any surprises here. Jozy Altidore and Jordan Morris are slam dunks and in very good form (look for them in the MLS Cup final). Then expect to see Juan Agudelo and Gyasi Zardes. Another pretty strong group especially if Altidore continues to play as well as he has for Toronto.

So just a month or so until Camp Cupcake and we will begin to see what Arena’s vision is for the team moving forward. I, for one, and excited to see him back in charge!

Steve Birrer
Steve Birrer

Soccer Analyst

Steve is an avid fan of all things soccer and the O’s. Originally from the west, he grew up in the Baltimore area. He returned to the west for college where he earned a BS degree in Chemical Engineering from Montana State University and spent 36 years working at the Idaho National Laboratory prior to retiring in 2013. It was during his school years in Baltimore where he learned to play soccer and that developed into a life long passion. He played competitively for over 40 years and was a four year starting goalkeeper at MSU. He also coached and refereed in the Idaho premier soccer and High School programs for many years.

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