All-Purpose, Never-Ending Soccer Thread

Trooper, I am not sure about the three-back being so bad. I'm not a fan of it when three you have back there are Gibbs, Berhalter and Conrad. Gibbs could be fine, the rest need to pack up and go home.

I don't see Bruce leaving. The goal is still to build towards 2010. I think he'll stay on because the lack of pressure and marketed improvement in the quality of players.

He could get a gig in the EPL, but that would depend on if they overwhelmed him with the financial offer. I just don't see him leaving just yet.

 

Three at the back did work against Mexico in 2002.

 

He's already expressed an interest in coaching in Europe ... actually finding a club with sack enough to hire an American manager will be no easy task, though. He'd probably fit in well with a Fizzy Drink Championship side on the cusp of a playoff push.

Don't see him going back to MLS unless it's an administrative position. Maybe he should take over US Soccer and actually get people with a clue (read: not youth soccer drones) in charge at Soccer House.

Barring a real embarassment at WC 2006, he could just as easily stay in the US job. The USMNT has grown each year he's been in charge, and the players from the Bradenton/Project 40/Generation Adidas will be in the prime of their careers for WC 2010. Unless there's a sure-fire, home run of a candidate (Eriksson, Hiddink, etc.) available, why not give him a last run with players he's known and coached since they were teenagers?

 

Three at the back was a push (Pope, Sanneh and Llamosa, IIRC), having Claudio Reyna as the right wingback was an utter failure. Bruce sprung the 3-5-2 on Aguirre more out of surprise than anything - the fact that he's only used it sparingly since should tell you how much confidence he has in it.

There might've been a much different result if Morales had stayed in and kept pressure on Reyna, rather than being subbed Loo-ee-sa Hernandez.

---------------

Conrad, Beerholder and Gibbs don't work in back three - you need two guys who are fast on their feet and an experienced, center back to clean up everything else. Gooch, a healthy (and fit) Gibbs and Pope would work.

Even then, though, you still need two wingbacks who can contribute offensively and provide defensive support. Hejduk can do the running, but his defense and crossing leave too much to be desired. Convey and Lewis can do the offense, but having spent entire seasons as attacking wingers, can they do that and be consistently counted on in defense?

Bruce will start four at the back against the Czech Republic. If he doesn't ... well, I'll say something nice about Liverpool.

 

My only feeling about him getting itchy feet is his age -- if he stays in the job for 4 more years, he might be too old to start in Europe.

 

The Bruce seems to enjoy the banter with the German press. I could see him getting his chance with a side in the Bundesliga, delivering some hardware there, then perhaps moving to the EPL.

The more I think about it (and I know some here are adamant against this), I'd like to see Klinsmann get the gig after he gets sacked following Germany's departure in the round of 16. Like I mentioned before, he knows America, he knows the game... I'd think he'd be a solid fit here....

 

I thought it was an SI reader because the website gets mentioned and then we get this on our only soccer thread. It's also a green newbie.

 

Hate to dredge up the Germany match, but Soccernet's Jen Chang's column on the match seems to echo most of my thoughts....

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=362678&root=us&cc=5901

I especially love Kasey Keller's comment....

 

No, he had stagnated in MLS. He really needed to get out of this league, be challenged more, and grow up. Going to Europe isn't a magic elixir, nor is it the lone path to international success (Donovan's a good example), but Beasley absolutely had to leave.

 

Grahame Jones of the LA Times on the Germany game, and who is likely eliminated from the WC roster (Klein, Zavagnin, etc.).

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-soccol27mar27,1,7549286.story?coll=la-headlines-sports

No, I'm not Grahame. That should be obvious from the low quality of my writing.. . . . . .

 

And the fact that you don't sound like a pompous, Euro-centric ass....

 

Saw this on SportsbyBrooks.com...

http://propunter.blogspot.com/2006/03/football-video-top-10-world-cup-goals.html