Sean Donahue
25 Feb 2006, 11:39 PM
"They've played great. I'm very happy to see my old teammate Taylor Twellman make an impact with the national team," Moore said. "I know Clint Dempsey is getting a lot of attention right now. Pat [Noonan], too. They all have a great chance to make the team."
~snip~
"Major League Soccer is doing an incredible job," Moore said. "It's a big part of the national team's success in the past four years. Bruce has brought a lot of young players in from MLS."
~snip~
"Their performance has given Euro clubs confidence in our players," he said. "We've proved ourselves on that world stage. Just look at our ranking."
The ever-ambitious Moore forecast even greater success to come: "It's about time an American played for Real Madrid."
~snip~
"I'm not sure how much pressure there is," he warned about the World Cup. "In 1994 we did well. In '98 we struggled.
"The pressure comes from playing in a tough group, with the Czech Republic, and Italy. Plus, in all honesty, Ghana's not going to be a walk in the park. They're a very good team. Everybody's going to have to be on top of their game, like they were in 2002, or they may just not make it out of their group. That's just the harsh reality."
~snip~
Moore is convinced that Arena is the best man for the job of deciding which players should take on the teams in the difficult group.
"The players really enjoy playing for him," Moore said. "He's a player's coach. They like working hard for him."
Moore's final assessment of the team split his praise equally among those who play in the States and those with foreign clubs.
"What I brought was a lot of intensity to every practice, every game -- of never wanting to lose," he said of his own national team legacy.
"But there are a lot of good players out there that still have that kind of fire. Keller, McBride, Eddie Pope, Landon -- there are real leaders on the team."
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=359785&root=us&cc=5901
~snip~
"Major League Soccer is doing an incredible job," Moore said. "It's a big part of the national team's success in the past four years. Bruce has brought a lot of young players in from MLS."
~snip~
"Their performance has given Euro clubs confidence in our players," he said. "We've proved ourselves on that world stage. Just look at our ranking."
The ever-ambitious Moore forecast even greater success to come: "It's about time an American played for Real Madrid."
~snip~
"I'm not sure how much pressure there is," he warned about the World Cup. "In 1994 we did well. In '98 we struggled.
"The pressure comes from playing in a tough group, with the Czech Republic, and Italy. Plus, in all honesty, Ghana's not going to be a walk in the park. They're a very good team. Everybody's going to have to be on top of their game, like they were in 2002, or they may just not make it out of their group. That's just the harsh reality."
~snip~
Moore is convinced that Arena is the best man for the job of deciding which players should take on the teams in the difficult group.
"The players really enjoy playing for him," Moore said. "He's a player's coach. They like working hard for him."
Moore's final assessment of the team split his praise equally among those who play in the States and those with foreign clubs.
"What I brought was a lot of intensity to every practice, every game -- of never wanting to lose," he said of his own national team legacy.
"But there are a lot of good players out there that still have that kind of fire. Keller, McBride, Eddie Pope, Landon -- there are real leaders on the team."
http://soccernet.espn.go.com/columns/story?id=359785&root=us&cc=5901