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DEL.ICIO.USWhat’s next for U.S.?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
AP / California resident and Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann has been frequently mentioned as a possible successor to Bruce Arena -- if the job comes open.
While listening to World Cup coverage and talk-show analysis on XM Radio has been a godsend for the most part, there is a cheerleading quality to some of the commentary, at least when it comes to the American team, that has gone beyond irritating.
In the wake of the U.S. elimination from the World Cup on Thursday by Ghana, former Major League Soccer player Manny Lagos sounded absolutely perky and euphoric about the “American style of play” and the “American mentality” that he says is responsible in part for the progress of the national team in recent years.
While the improvements are hard not to notice, it’s also not all that difficult to vivisect the notion that there is a distinct American style, and that our attitude toward playing a game that the rest of the world has mastered a long time ago can add something significant to the equation.
These pronouncements sound tinny and naive, and unfortunately they may persist even with the cold slap in the face issued to American soccer in Germany ‘06.
First of all, even Bruce Arena has said there is no American style of play. One of the most difficult aspects of his job, other than finding enough players capable of competing at the World Cup level, has been to find players who have learned the game the same way, much less at the same pace. For starters, we don’t have the homogenous culture of Italy, or Germany or Brazil or Holland that has dictated how soccer players develop in those countries.
This country is too vast and the soccer community too fragmented for any singular style to be created. Especially when our best athletes are long gone into other, more lucrative sports. Arena has been forced to take whatever he can get. While he made plenty of mistakes in this World Cup, he didn’t have many alternatives to experiment with.
As for the “American mentality” that Lagos can’t shut up about, I wish he’d elaborate on how it’s helped, if at all. Yes, Arena has done well understanding the culture from which his players have emerged, and using that as a motivation for an undertalented squad. But what the U.S. national team program needs — as much as better, more creative players WHO CAN SCORE GOALS — is a mindset that goes far beyond what we’ve concocted here.
I’m not sugggesting Arena walk the plank, as some angry posters to soccer message boards have been doing for the past day. But American soccer has to break out of a comfortable cocoon, an illusion that we’ve got everything we need to succeed internationally right here at home.
It’s not good enough any more to think that our best players (i.e., Landon Donovan) can stay home and play in Major League Soccer and get significantly better.
It’s not good enough anymore to trump the “American spirit” and believe that will compensate for the lack of technical skill and creative freedom that are by-products of our youth and developmental schemes.
And it’s hardly good enough to pretend that our money and organization can help players grow in a sport that needs to allow kids at the youngest levels to just play, and enjoy the game, and not worry about winning. Pleasing control-freak parents and coaches is not the objective of the game, but that’s what it has become far too frequently.
We are not where we were after France ‘98, when American soccer was understandably demoralized. We are much further along than that. But for all of Arena’s success, he may have taken U.S. soccer as far as he can. All of his experience has been in this country. If there is a change coming, there aren’t any other possible American successors who can come close to what Arena’s done.
Many names have been bandied about, most of whom have had success internationally. Germany’s Juergen Klinsmann lives in California and has ties to Arena and the upper echelons of U.S. Soccer. He also won a World Cup as an attacking player with flair who’s employed a fresh approach coaching what was once a dull German side. Australia’s Dutch coach Guus Hiddink, who worked wonders with South Korea in ‘02, is taking another team from a country without much of a soccer pedigree to the second round, but he’s reportedly heading to coach Russia this fall. Steve Nicol coaches the New England Revolution of MLS, and is a Scot who had a successful career with Liverpool.
We don’t have to blow up what’s been created, just think differently about how to develop players who can take the U.S. to the elite of the world game. The structure should serve that purpose above all and be expanded to bring the Latin and immigrant mentalities into the soccer mainstream, preferably supplanting the suburban ideal that dominates. Piece of cake, right?
In short, we need to import even more global soccer culture to America. We like to think we’ve assimilated some of that already to develop our own unique approach to the game, but it’s clear that’s just not good enough. We can’t afford to continue to go at it alone.
Comments
Commenting is now closed for this entry.
By John Brown
June 23, 2006 4:15 PM | Link to this
Who cares? Its soccer. That we actually actually allow this insipid game for overprotected “Momma’s Boys” in this country is embaressment enough.
By footballfan
June 23, 2006 4:54 PM | Link to this
Hey John Brown, the only embaressment is your idiottic speling - nice try with the big word insipid. Troll.
By Henry
June 23, 2006 5:51 PM | Link to this
Well first round done and again major refereeing problems. ie: Clear intentional hand balls in the box not called, a clear dive penalty give. FIFA is ruining the game.
As far as Arena is concerned, he has learned an expencive and embarressing lesson. He lost his chance to coach a major team in Europe. His selection of the team players on paper was not so bad, but their performances were poor. This is not his fault because there is no better talent available and the players that went to Germany did not play with the American spirit, that is required to overcome deficiency.
Answer to the next step with or without Arena lays with the youth devisions and the MLS.
The juniors must be better funded and the coaching staff mus be required to attend junior division games. All MLS players must be required to provide soccer clinics to the youth divisions and report upcoming tallent to the select regional or national taems. We are loosing to many tallentd youth player after they turn 19. The WUSA fell appart because of the disintrest of the players to volunteer in helping coaching our youth.
The MLS must start playing all year round with maybe two or three weeks off. After all of our regular workforce do not get four months off. Their season should conform with the European season so when we go to the Word Cup the players will be fit. We must start playing in the international tournaments like the Libertador Cup, so our players get international experience.
And most off all the MLS must hire European or South American Coaches. It made a hugh difference in the Asian And African teams.
So much for out team.
Next the knock out round. Almost all teams deserve to be there, those that do not will be gone.
Lets in ejoy the next week, sadly without our boys.
By Henry
June 23, 2006 5:53 PM | Link to this
Oh yahh, I forgot that Klinsmann changed to the American style ou play, with talent of course. He will stay in Germany and live here and probably help us develop our youth players if asked.