Top Stories

Bradley on Fulham shortlist

BPI_SlovISIvUSAISI.bcbu  

photo by Joe Toth/ISIphotos.com

When it comes to Americans, It appears Fulham is interested in more than just players.

U.S. national team head coach Bob Bradley is on Fulham's shortlist to succeed manager Roy Hodgson, who joined Liverpool late last week. 

While Bradley is not considered the favorite to land the job, he would make history for becoming the first American to land a head coaching job with a European club if he wound up as the Cottagers' coach.

Sven-Goran Eriksson and Mark Hughes are also reportedly being considered, with Eriksson currently Fulham's top choice.

What do you think of Bradley possibly coaching Fulham? Think he would succeed? How much do you think this could help open the door for other American coaches in Europe?

Share your thoughts below.

Comments

  1. So Pete, what you’re inferring here is that the US players who are based across Europe learned everything they needed to know about playing international footie from Bob Bradley? That’s insulting, considering the company of managers these guys play under aside from the obvious Roy Hodgson. Donovan and Howard under the skillful eye of David Moyes, Edu and Beasley under Walter Smith at Rangers, etc.

    If anything, the USMNT survived through the group stages because of the individual players’ international experience and applying that experience to the international game. Bradley saw success, much like Arena in ’02, largely by association as the “coach” of the USMNT. Now I’m not saying psychological preparation, SOME tactical strategy, and conditioning employed by Bradley and Co. wasn’t somewhat helpful, but let’s give our PLAYERS some credit; their experience kept the USMNT alive.

    Reply
  2. To play devil’s advocate….Klinsmann was instrumental in restructuring the development of german football from the youth level up, and it was klinsmann who picked Loew as his successor. And look years down the road at what Germany has accomplished.

    Reply
  3. Arena was “rumored” to have been a candidate for the Northern Ireland position, but that obviously didn’t pan out.

    Reply
  4. I’m loving all of these posts stating that if you basically aren’t on the Bob Bradley Train, then you’re a hater. Really? You mean I can’t form my own opinion and I have to go with the flow of blindly allegiant, Uncle Sam’s Army groupies? Please, spare me the pro-MLS/Garber rhetoric in touting the laurels of Bob Bradley and US Soccer.

    First, I don’t hate Bradley, and I give him kudos for taking the team as far as he could with the limited knowledge of the international game and player pool he had. For having essentially learned on the job, you have to respect him.

    However, you have to consider what you’re saying here, which is basically putting a coach, who has ZERO foreign club managerial experience, in a position of managing a club who only a few years ago, managed to fight off relegation, due in large part to one Roy Hodgson. It’s really a myopic view to expect someone like Bradley to just step in and guide this club through one of the most incredibly talented leagues in the world.

    Managing a club, as some have already mentioned, is significantly different from coaching a national side. Sure you can argue “thin resumes” of Grant and Brown, but they possess significant experience over Bradley…it’s apples to oranges really, and a poor comparison at that. Now just because Fulham has established itself as a quasi-Yank haven in the EPL, does not mean that a US manager should also fit into its plans. A mass exodus of players from Craven Cottage would take place. Look at it this way…it’s like a person who’s just finished leasing a jaguar (hodgson) taking it back in and trading it for a hyundai sonata (bradley). You’re going from a highly intelligent and experienced level of football to a limited, inexperienced skill set of management. It’s a recipe for relegation and Bradley would be sacked within a matter of a few months.

    Second, Bradley would function best by learning all of the various nuances of managing a foreign club on a smaller scale, say Switzerland, Austria, Belgium or Scandinavia. Netherlands could also be a good fit because they have literally been the doorway for US players to learn the international game. That being said, even if Bob didn’t become a manager, he could at least function in an assistant role and learn the trade in that manner. There’s no shame in that; everyone has to learn at some point. Who’s to say that Bradley won’t take that international experience and bring it back to the USMNT later down the road?

    Reply
  5. Jeez, given that list I’d take Bob in a heartbeat. Sven? No thank you, really do you need to ask why? Coaches can lose their form as well as players. Hughes? Well, hard to separate the mgmt from the coaching, but what he did with untold riches in talent at City is stunningly little.

    On the other hand, Bradley has shown the ability to field a competitive team even though outmatched on skills dramatically.

    Roy’s shoes are tough to fill, though. Great manager, tough on Fulham to lose him!

    Reply
  6. There was talk of Arena going to Europe after 2006 but it died when we crashed out.

    Bradley is as good or better. His RoboBoB persona is probably better suited for an anti-American Europe since he isn’t anywhere near as arrogant and abrasive as Arena.

    Reply
  7. “Plus I would love to see Bob try to yank a player like Zamora, Murphy, or Duff at the end of a close match”

    No problem, all three are washed up has beens or never-weres. Fulham is their last rodeo in the top flight. Like they want a rep for being difficult? Next stop Portsmouth on a free.

    Reply
  8. Go down the list of Prem managers and tell me that they all have fantastically superior resumes to BB.

    Avram Grant had a thinner resume than BB before he got Chelsea, of all jobs.

    Phil Brown? Right.

    BB would do fine but this is just another rumour so don’t get all hot and bothered yet.

    Reply
  9. That would be a great job for him, and if he can have the team fighting for a Europa League spot he could get more Americans on the radar screen to coach over seas. Then to see him bring in a couple more Americans and get the Fulham team going would be great. I really hope he gets the job, and he takes it.

    Reply
  10. Bradley would be an excellent choice, I wish him luck. But why is Sven even on the list!? This guy has more lives than a cat. If he goes to Fulham, Fulham goes down, no doubt.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Vince Noir's Trousers Cancel reply