Jürgen Klinsmann is the New US Men's National Team Head Coach

by Geoff Gibson on Jul 29, 2011 9:36 AM PDT

Well that didn't take long. Former USMNT head coach Bob Bradley was relieved of the position yesterday and today we got the head coach everybody has been begging and screaming for since 2010 after the USMNT was handily trumped by a very floppy Ghanaian team. Those of you familiar with international soccer will remember that Klinsman coached the German team to third place in the 2006 World Cup.

"We are excited to have Jürgen as the head coach of our Men’s National Team," said Gulati. "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."

It will be interesting to see what kind of deal the USSF and Klinsman agreed upon. Prior to Bradley's contract extension after the 2010 World Cup, it was revealed that one of the reasons why Klinsman and USSF couldn't reach an agreement back then was because Klinsman wanted full control over the youth development system, something Sunil Gulati and the USSF executives weren't willing to part with.

Klinsman's first ever match in charge of the USMNT will be the friendly against Mexico on August 10th. Although don't judge him too harshly if that game is a lost. A man can only do so much in two weeks.

[US Soccer]

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This is awesome news!

by The_Rel on Jul 29, 2011 9:56 AM PDT reply actions

Should be interesting

to see what the first USMNT roster looks like. I’ll bet it will be VERY different than some of the teams Bradley put together. I like that we will have an outsider’s fresh perspective on who our most valuable players are.

No Pity, Rip City

by Rose City Til I Die on Jul 29, 2011 10:03 AM PDT reply actions

Yay I was wrong!

In addition to reshaping the roster, I hope Klinsmann can institute a new culture, new training regimens, and a general overhaul of the US team’s philosophy.

by pdb on Jul 29, 2011 10:14 AM PDT reply actions

Since Klinsmann was hired within 24 hours of Bradley's release,

Bradley was effectively on the chopping block at the end of the Gold Cup. Once an agreement was made with Klinsmann the gears began to move. Klinsmann probably comes out on top with a favorable agreement because of USSF’s humiliation by both Panama and Mexico, the failure of the U-18 team and U-21 team. Klinsmann had a position to get the demands he has placed on the USSF, and the USSF is now willing to release the reins to him since it is apparent there are glaring differences in Mexico and the US’s ability to train and develop players.

Interested in seeing what takes place, at least he has three years to get something done.

Jag kom, jag såg, erövrade jag.

by Kejsare on Jul 29, 2011 10:36 AM PDT reply actions

I hate all his decisions and want him fired!

Blazers win!

by The X-man on Jul 29, 2011 10:54 AM PDT reply actions

You’ve changed my mind! Let’s go coach-less!

by The_Rel on Jul 29, 2011 11:36 AM PDT reply actions

Hope this works out

At the very least we should find out more about our younger offensive players(ie Torres).

And Good luck to Bradley, he probably deserved a better exit.

Say what you want about America, thirteen bucks still gets you a hell of a lot of mice!

by No Pity on Jul 29, 2011 12:42 PM PDT reply actions

Neato. Will be interesting to see who he brings on as assistants and who leads the various youth teams.

long live the jd.

by jksnake99 on Jul 29, 2011 1:38 PM PDT reply actions

Please, for the love of god, keep your expectations low for the time being.

Because the shift from Bob Bradley to Jurgen Klinsmann is so drastic, it’s going to take him a while to get his system applied and find the right players within the US talent pool to execute what he’s trying to do. So much of his success and failure will be predicated on the talent that he’s inheriting now (which starts with soon-to-be-over-the-hill luminaries such as Landon Donovan, Clint Dempsey and Steve Cherundolo), even if his lasting impact is changing the player development systems in the lower levels of American soccer. Coupled with the set of stars that That Country To Our South happens to have, Klinsmann is probably not going to have the same level of success that Bradley had in his first few years as manager, but they’ve got something special that America should look to recreate, and that’s where Klinsmann’s going to have his success.

This is a long-term process and I hope that soccer fans and USSF recognize that and give Klinsmann the time he needs to truly redevelop the entire program.

I write for Stumptown Footy, SB Nation's Portland Timbers blog.

by thehemogoblin on Jul 29, 2011 2:14 PM PDT reply actions