U.S. soccer gets own Coach K

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Posted: July 30, 2011

NOW THAT U.S. Soccer's perennial coach-in-waiting finally has the job, Juergen Klinsmann will be expected to kick start a stagnant men's national team.

U.S. Soccer moved quickly to name a replacement after firing Bob Bradley on Thursday by announcing Klinsmann's hiring yesterday.

And he'll get his first game with his new team here on Aug. 10 when the U.S. meets Mexico at Lincoln Financial Field.

The former standout player with five European powers (Stuttgart, Inter Milan, Monaco, Tottenham Hotspur, Bayern Munich), a 1990 World Cup-winner with West Gernmany, a 1996 European champion with Germany, and coach of the German national team, Klinsmann is a familiar name to American fans. The U.S. almost hired him twice, first after the 2006 World Cup and again last year before giving Bradley what turned out to be a short-lived contract extension.

"I am proud and honored to be named the head coach of the U.S. men's national team," Klinsmann said. "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."

Klinsmann's desire for wide-ranging authority over the entire U.S. program had been considered a point of contention preventing previous deals. Now, Klinsmann will have a chance to make his mark on the federation's youth teams, given current coaching vacancies at the U.S. Under-20 and Under-23 teams.

"His greatest weapon is the fact that he understands the American people more than any other foreign coach possibly could," said former national team player Eric Wynalda.

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