Photo by ISIphotos.com
It took five years, but U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati has the coach he's wanted all along.
Juergen Klinsmann was hired as coach of the U.S. men's national team on Friday, replacing the ousted Bob Bradley.
"We are excited to have Jürgen as the head coach of our Men's National Team," Gulati said in a press release. "He is a highly accomplished player and coach with the experience and knowledge to advance the program. Jürgen has had success in many different areas of the game and we look forward to the leadership he will provide on and off the field."
Klinsmann, who guided Germany to the FIFA World Cup semifinals in 2006, has been linked with the U.S. coaching job ever since Bruce Arena left the post following that same World Cup. When U.S. Soccer did not want to concede as much power over the national-team structure as Klinsmann wanted, Gulati turned to Bradley.
After the 2010 World Cup cycle, one in which Bradley guided the United States to the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup title, 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup final, first place in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, first place in its World Cup group and a Round of 16 berth, Gulati again tried to woo Klinsmann to the job, but the two failed to agree on terms yet again.
Bradley was then handed a four-year contract extension but was let go on Thursday after an underwhelming start to the 2014 World Cup cycle, one that included a second-place finish to Mexico in the 2011 Gold Cup with a spot in the 2013 Confederations Cup on the line.
With a rematch against Mexico on Aug. 10 in Philadelphia, it will be Klinsmann manning the sidelines for the U.S. national team. He'll be introduced to the press in New York on Monday.
"I am proud and honored to be named the head coach of the U.S. Men's National Team," said Klinsmann, who most recently had been a consultant for Toronto FC and is the first non-American U.S. national team coach since Bora Milutinovic in 1995. "I would like to thank the U.S. Soccer Federation for the opportunity, and I'm excited about the challenge ahead. I am looking forward to bringing the team together for our upcoming match against Mexico and starting on the road toward qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup."
—————
What do you think of the hire? Think Klinsmann is the right coach to take U.S. Soccer to the next level?
Share your thoughts below.
Mexico’s record against BB was not very good. A blowout against a B USA team and the last comeback along with the usual wins in Azteca, but against the US in the US not so hot. And until the last match, I don’t think anyone in Mexico thought the US was going to be anything but tough.
I’m very excited about Klinsmann. He is a proven player and coach…yes, I said coach. It seems to have become a popular opinion that the only reason Germany was successful under his tenure was because of Loew. That’s simply not true…and look at it this way, even if you want to say that, doesn’t it say something that he was astute enough to bring him on as an assistant?? People also point to Bayern Munich and say he was a failure there. Absolutely not! When he got terminated, Bayern Munich was 3 points out of first place. The problem at Bayern Munich was unrealistic fan and ownership expectations. The disagreements between Klinsmann and Beckenbauer were also well documented.
Klinsmann brings new ideas and approaches to the USMNT, something that we have been SORELY missing lately. He also knows how to win at the highest levels, and I think can be the one to take the MNT to the upper echelon, instead of being continually mired down in the “also ran” crowd on the world stage.
And you put money on the fact that Mexico has taken notice. I’ll bet we won’t see that swagger that they walked off the field with a few weeks ago in future meetings. They know Klinsmann will be a formidable coach.
I give Alexi plenty of grief, plenty; there are plenty of other faces of US soccer though, come on. he’s one of them, and yes, he’s made me cringe.
anyway, the original remark was “Alexi is part of the problem with country club soccer USA.”
As the media face of American soccer he is very embarrassing most of the time
where did Alexi do that? would have been fun to see.
and Klinsmann does need to produce, and pretty darn quickly. we definitely disagree on that.
on Alexi, why is he part of the problem?
Alexi Lalas with angst across his forehead, and sour grapes spilling from his tongue, says Klinnsman must produce now and big. Ignore him Klinsi, Alexi is part of the problem with country club soccer USA. It will take time and precision, do it well Klinsi.
Kelly, you are comparing apples to oranges. Nowak never coached the first national team. Nowak never coached in a top flight competition such as the World Cup or UEFA Champions league. No disrespect to Nowak, but the guy, who won the World Cup and European Championship as a player and led his national team to the third place in the World Cup as a coach has a more relevant experience than a guy who is a solid coach in the MLS. As for Klinsmann’s track record, people tend to forget that he took over the German team after it failed to advance from the group in Euro 2004 and led it to the third place in the WC two years later. He also rehauled German youth development system, something I hope they will allow him to do here. He’s been an outspoken critic of the flawed “pay-to-play” youth development system in the US and I happen to agree with him. Time will show if he succeeds or fails, but the reality is that Ferguson, Mourinho, Guardiola and Hiddink are not knocking on Gulati’s door. What sets Klinsmann apart from other candidates is that he has a vision for the US soccer that goes beyond the confines of first national team. This is why he did not take the job offer last year, because he wanted control over the youth development system. You should try to read a couple articles of what he did with the youth development system in Germany and how it prepares players for German national team. The million dollar question is whether Gulati agreed to hand the control over to Klinsmann or whether Klinsmann backed off his demands.
good point.
1 guy that will for sure be happy is Landon Donovan.
A guy on a mexican sports channel said that it was Donovan that had a heated argument with Bob inside the US bus after they lost to Mexico in the Gold Cup Final.
Jurgen was a logical hire, we will just have to wait and see how he performs as a coach.
I wish him the best because the future of US soccer is in his hands and I want it to be a bright future.
I didnt think Sunil had a nasty side to him. He gave no warning to Bob that this was coming. I think that Bob deserved better than that, he was still calling up guys for the Mexican friendly.
I just wish that US supportes will evaluate Jurgen performance with a cool head, good or bad we just have to give him time.
Congratulations to Jurgen. I am cautiously hopeful, of course, and interested in the details of the deal re. what power Jurgen received this time.
Considering the way he went about his business these last few years to finally land this job, he better freakin’ deliver, and I’m not talking about a prettier style or any other weak a$$ judgment criteria like that.
Results. Deliver. That’s it.
I’m super excited to have klinsmann. not that klinsi is a super genuous, but he is accomplished and if we don’t do well now, we’ll not have bradley to blame but will have to face the fact that are talent level isn’t quite world class. that said, i do think klinsmann has an eye for talent and knows how to develop players.
on a differnt note, why are we already playing mexico again. what’s the point?
rational post. and I agree.
Magically we will now have elite players. He is for sure a unicorn
Thanks. That’s been my point all along.
That’s all I’m really trying to say.
I wasn’t really comparing him to Nowak alone but that was the name everybody jumped on.
I honestly thought I’d get more stick about Rongen.
I won’t regard Klinsmann as the Messiah of US Soccer but I do like his hiring. Our boys peaked before the World Cup under Bradley. It was time for a change. Personally, I do think Klinsmann will do a good job.
No offense to BB but it was time and there is a coaching vacancy for my Chicago Fire. Hope BB gets a phone call.
In regards to our ever changing kits…place the blame on US Soccer. Nike does not dictate what colors our team wears. US Soccer could have asked for a red shirt years ago and Nike would have produced.
No.
What I am pointing out is that Klinsman’s record, even from his German tenure, is not something that makes him the balls to the wall choice. It’s not significantly better than many coaches, including Nowak. John F wrote that no names came to mind that matched Klinsman’s record. I threw out a few names that sprang to mind with similar characteristics, some good some bad. Commenters have taken this to mean that I am campaigning for these men, and for some reason Peter Nowak, in particular.
Not really. I feel objectively, there are real questions about Klinsman many are overlooking in the rush to worship. Like I’ve said I hope he succeeds, but he’s got the same questions to answer as Bob Bradley had, the level of talent is not going to magically increase just because Klinsman is coming.
He is going to have to qualify for the first time in his career, he’s going to have to deal with a largely uncooperative USSF, he’s going to be working in a system that’s a mare’s nest, he’s going to be covering a nation several times the size of Europe let alone Germany, he’s going to face cow pastures for fields, shacks for locker rooms, Azteca, Saprissa, and bags of urine, he’s going to have a much shallower talent pool and a weaker domestic league, he’s going to have pry players loose from clubs not as impressed with the US as with Germany, he doesn’t have Low, and I don’t think a few stints as an “advisor” to teams, especially Toronto, make him an expert with the US “system”.
While one (being a great player) doesn’t lead to the other(being a great coach), they aren’t mutually exclusive.
the whole failed at bayern thing is just simply not true.
Klinsman’s record is a bit of a small sample to draw too many conclusions, but at the very least, he’s had more national team success than Nowak which seems to be a pretty strong argument that on paper Klinsman is better.
I would agree it’s not quite the slam dunk some would claim it to be if you are comparing the two.
I don’t think Nowak would be a better hire, what I am saying is that there is little evidence to indicate that Klinsman is going to be the significant upgrade that many seem to believe him to be. He’s not the clear cut answer many are touting him as.
Your take on the Bayern job leaves more to question. It sounds like Klinsman may have cut a similar deal with the USSF and could we could be facing a similar breakdown, I would think Gulati to be every bit as grudging at relinquishing his hold as those at Bayern. Does he quit in the middle of the hex if he doesn’t get his way or does he suck it up and qualify?
Look, I really hope the man succeeds, I just don’t see the reason for all the huzzahs and hoorays.
Kelly, you admitted yourself that Klinsman has a better international resume than Nowak, so is the US Men’s coaching job suddenly not an international job anymore?
I am pointing out that Klinsman’s record gives no reason to think he’s going to be any better at the US job than any number of others out there would be, Nowak being one. Klinsman’s Bayern stint was hardly stellar even with a huge edge in talent and money available. And it certainly is not enough to warrant the thought that he’s going to be a significant upgrade over coaches like Nowak or even Bob Bradley.
LOTS of coaches have flamed out at Bayern. very good ones. But let’s be a little more honest about the FC Hollywood situation than just the stats.
1) He was promised full control of the team, including youth and transfers. Then Bayern reneged.
2) He was promised the chance to change the “culture” at FC Bayern. But before he’d been given a full season to do so (and regressing slightly when a team is in ‘revamp’ mode during a 1st season is NORMAL), Kaiser Franz reneged and said “Win with what you have now.”
It’s fair to say that Klinsi was undermined by the FC Hollywood culture because they did not want their entrenched positions attacked. His “failure” was in taking Kaiser Franz at his word, instead of recognizing that at Bayern, and in Germany, no one can be allowed to have a bigger stature than him.
I’m not all-in on Klinsi. But I think trying to say Peter Nowak would have been a better hire is far-fetched.
Seriously? Queriroz? The most under performing “genius” since Ruud Gullit. Milutinovic? Been there, done that. Last time I looked Nowak, Rongen (RONGEN?!!!, are you kidding?), Dooley and Donadoni had coached exactly the same amount of World Cup games as I have. So I guess I should be on your list too?
Really? Did you really just compare someone who coached Bayern Munich to someone who coached DC United in 2004? Really?
There’s no reason to bring in the big guns for a friendly with Mexico, especially so soon after our loss in a match that meant something and had something tied to it. Time for him to get to see a bit of the shallower end of the player pool to gauge what he is working with.
Uh Jacob, ever heard of a contract?
Being a great player is in no way related to being a great coach. The two are mutually exclusive.
HAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAH! I am jumping for joy.
Comparing Klinsman to Nowak is ridic. Nowak gets his players every day and can actually have a real impact bc of that reason.
A National team coach needs to be a great evaluator of talent and needs to be tactically sound. He has a week or two to get his players together and get them on the same page tactically. He also has to understand how his players fit into a system and what is the best option tactically given his players. To compare his days at fc bayern to nowak with the union is absurd. He will be a huge upgrade from myself. I played at princeton in the late 70s and my tactics are on par with my level of playing experience. I also gave Bornstein countless caps and recently started robbie rogers vs spain. That alone should of got me fired. Not to mention my absolute god awful approach to the ghana game last summer.
This is the best day for US Soccer since beating mexico in south korea in 02. Brillant. It can’t get any worse.
Back in the fold? He’s already in the fold. What the hell else do you want?
Interesting prediction, but I would bet a lot of money ain’t gonna happen. Actually, I am wondering, if Klinsmann does call up Michael Bradley, whether he will accept. I would not be surprised if MB would decline a call-up out of loyalty to good ol’ Pop. And against Mexico Aug. 10, no way will MB get called up. Borussia Moenchengladbach is playing SSV Jahn Regensburg in the first round of the DFB Pokal as I type (Gladbach is up 2:1), and MB did not even make the trip with the team. I think Klinsmann is not going to be calling up players who are not even warming the bench. MB is facing a brave new world and it is not going to be easy for him after years of entitlement: a guaranteed 90 minutes with the team centered around him at the expense of several other deserving players. It was total dysfunctional. Thank goodness it’s finally over.
Klinsmann does speak english so that is a clear positive compared to many other foreign coaches. He is in So. Cal. so he probably has seen many very good hispanic youth players along with some very bad ones. I am not sure that will help or hurt the case for including more hispanics on the USMNT or is simply irrelevant. My experience is coaches prefer players they believe can help win games whether their heritage is german, mexican, english, spanish, brazilian or good old american mutt. I expect the ethnicity thing really has little to do with it.
I have seen Klinsmann play and he was a forward who worked constantly to get open in order to be available and one who could finish. The tactical part of that, making runs and getting open, is something he might be able to teach, the finishing thing will still rest largely on the players’ skills.
The US is in big need of a defensive rebuild, I am not sure that is Klinsmann’s forte and hope he can find the assistants to help him do that.
If he wants the US to play a little bit like Barcelona, that might not be bad, but if he tries to force a style of play the US players do not have the skill collectively to pull off (as his choices for coaching at TFC have done) it may be a long few years.
I guess we will learn in the next year how things are going to go.
Absolutely no reason for a 21-year-old supremely talented young forward who has 12 goals in 39 appearances to be worried. If JK doesn’t call in Altidore it only proves what many already believe – that he cannot evaluate talent and has made a reputation off of Loew’s ability to coach.
What kool-aid would that be? The flabergasted foof rah coming out of commenterdom is nearly messianic in praise of Klinsman. There’s your real kool-aid.
I’m merely pointing out that there are significant flaws in his managerial history and that there are indeed others out there with similar, if not more, experience.
As I wrote, he may be just the thing, but there is certainly no reason to go whole-hog in adoration of his Blondness. There are holes in his swing.
Personally, I think this is a wonderful hire for the US.
I don’t think Klinsi has been given enough credit here for his revitalisation of the German youth system. The reason why Germany was so successful in South Africa was due largely in part to the changes Klinsi made at the youth level. Remember, Germany had the youngest team at the World Cup, yet they produced some of the most exciting football of the tournament. Let’s hope California Klinsi will be able to do the same in the states.
Im with you on that one Cammando
No hate, just sad resignation
Are you on drugs!!!!!!!!
Oaky, let’s!
Peter Nowak: Source; Wikipedia –
142 games 57-46-25 MLS record in four years, including one MLS Cup and a Supporters Shield.
U-23 Coach
USMNT Assistant coach
Juergen Klinsman: Source Wikipedia –
34 games 20-8-6 Third place WCF 2006 GMNT
43 games 25-9-9 Bayern Munich
77 games 45-17-15 total
Klinsman has about half the games Nowak does. Klinsman has a third place finish in the 2006 World Cup, but no domestic titles of any kind to Nowak’s one. It’s safe to say that Nowak’s domestic coaching career is at least equal to that of Klinsman’s – more games vs. a lower winning percentage. Nothing about his domestic record stands out. Nowak on the other hand turned around a moribund DC team and is currently doing the same for the expansion Philadelphia squad. Klinsman had a star-studded Bayern.
On the international front Klinsman has his run to the semi-finals in 2010. (A run on home soil, without qualifying and in a forgiving group.) Nowak has several years as an assistant to Bob Bradley and at the helm of the U-23’s.
While having the better of it at the international level, Juergen is not appreciably better with a domestic side, at least not to the point to be hailed as genius.
The point is, there is really nothing in Klinsman’s record that sets him so far apart from many coaches out there with European experience and a knowledge of the American game to make him a “slam-dunk” choice.
He may lead the US to nirvana, but there is little in his record that would lead one to believe so.
Yeah….I know it may be too early for the details but it says in the blog post that development tripped up previous efforts to bring him on.
Does this mean that USSF have ceded some authority? Or has Klinsmann backed off his demands?
Klinsmann turns down jobs like Philadelphia for breakfast. Jurgen has played and coached more high profile games in one season, than Nowak has even dreamed of. ENough said, Kelly. Stop drinking he kool-aid!
Honestly, I can see what you’re saying about Bornstein (along with other players), but Klinnsman may actually be able to get more out of these guys than BB did. I’m holding out judgement until I actually see them play in a meaningful match.
+1000
Klinnsman was an amazing player, and I really hope he does well as the new manager. I was quite impressed with what he did with Germany, so I’m hopeful.
That said, I hope we can get Hiddink someday–I think that guy’s a genius.
For cool Mac people it’s: option u, then type u or another vowel you are interested in having umlauted.
+1 THANK YOU! Final somebody says something, people keep just perpetuating this idea that he didn’t do well that year at Bayern when it’s not true.
Right. I am most interested in seeing who he includes and who he excludes. Likely, of course, that Bradley, Howard, Donovan, Deuce, etc., stay…but what about the Bornsteins and Findleys of the pool?
they’re not pessimistic aHOLES…who they are is quite obvious…they’re related to Bob and Michael Bradley…”running Bayern into the ground”….funny how people make these statements and have no clue of what they’re referring to.