Sampson Fired.

Discussion in 'USA Men: News & Analysis' started by purojogo, Jun 21, 2004.

  1. ElJefe

    ElJefe Moderator
    Staff Member

    Feb 16, 1999
    Colorful Colorado
    Club:
    FC Dallas
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I stopped reading right there.

    John Harkes showed in the next six months why he didn't deserve to be captain in the first place.
     
  2. Sachin

    Sachin New Member

    Jan 14, 2000
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    While Sampson coached the team to victories over Brazil and Austria (in Austria, using the 3-6-1).

    Sachin
     
  3. Red Card

    Red Card Member+

    Mar 3, 1999
    Club:
    New York Red Bulls
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Maybe he can be the guest analyst on the weekly MLS highlights show?

    Btw, how did he get clearance to go to Cuba anyway? Isn't that off limits to US citizens?
     
  4. slpcpa

    slpcpa New Member

    Mar 14, 2002
    Yorktown Heights, NY
    The US government revoked his citizenship following the debacle at the 98 WC. He is now a man without a country! :)
     
  5. Americano e Orgulho

    Americano e Orgulho New Member

    Jun 5, 2002
    This has been discussed in other forums, but I'll take a crack at it. American citizens, if approved, may go to Cuba for various reasons. One of them being cultural exchange. My wording may be off on this, but the general premise is correct. These cultural exchanges include sporting events. A friend of mine went as part of a dance group, legally.
     
  6. Adam Zebrowski

    Adam Zebrowski New Member

    May 28, 1999
    the sampson who coached copa america '95 will be the guy I will remember...

    arena's 02 tourney run is followed next by the '95 tourney run by sampson...

    my own view is he tended to think and over analyze far too much, looking at his weaknesses and not a teams strengths...

    the cr semi group could be a more difficult qualifying test than the hex...

    each team has only 6 matches in the semis versus 10 matches in the hex, one bad performance in the semis in that group could doom you...

    in the hex, even an RFK honduras type performance doesn't kill your chances.
     
  7. Crewmudgeon

    Crewmudgeon Member+

    Sep 3, 1999
    Crewdom
    I nominate him for coach of Chivas EEUU.
     
  8. dfb547490

    dfb547490 New Member

    Feb 9, 2000
    The Heights
    Sampson won't get a job in MLS or probably even the A-League after this. I see him going either to the NCAA, or some English- or Spanish-speaking minnow somewhere in the world (probably staying in CONCACAF--Puerto Rico and Bermuda would be the frontrunners IMO--altho I think he might be a decent fit for a team like India).
     
  9. Revolt

    Revolt Member+

    Jun 16, 1999
    Davis, CA
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Sampson to the Crew!
     
  10. lurking

    lurking Member+

    Feb 9, 2002
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    So much hate for Sampson. I wouldnt want Sampson coaching my team, but let it go people, its just bitter and small minded that people wish him so much ill because of 1 bad tournament.
     
  11. Wahoo

    Wahoo New Member

    Aug 15, 2001
    Seattle, USA
    Only a non-crew fan would suggest that!!!

    Hehe, Sampson is a fine coach, but I agree with the previous poster that suggested he over analyzes and seems to coach more from a fear standpoint. Knowing "x"s and "o"s is great, but can be limiting.

    On the contrary, Arena seems to go with a gut feeling more often and also coaches a more positive game.

    I don't think Sampson will end up coaching in MLS anytime soon, though I do think he'd be a good administrator. (Thats not a knock... it's playing to strengths)
     
  12. Sachin

    Sachin New Member

    Jan 14, 2000
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    You can really tell who the old-time fans are around here. I must be one of the few who remembers the Copa America team from 1995, when the boys, freed from the shackles of Bora Ball, took all of South America by storm. I remember Sampson saying in the Washington Post something to the effect of "All the style and flair was there, they just needed someone to tell them it was ok to play like that". Of course, that was before MLS started and the long, slow qualifying slog sank in.

    I guess I've become a Sampson apologist, mostly because I remember the accomplishments on his watch.

    1. Gaining a point in Azteca. The only American coach to do so. And he did with with 10 men after Agoos (ha!) was sent off early on (within the first 20 minutes or so). Hell Wynalda played defense in that game like never before or since. I remember, I was there.

    2. Beating Brazil. Yes, it took a superhuman performace by Keller, stoning Romario on something like 6 dead-to-rights 1 v 1 breakaways. And throw in one sublime move by Preki for the only goal. But it still took place in 1998 before the World Cup.

    3. Copa America 1995. I'm sure fewer than 10% of the people who frequent this forum know we took part in Copa America 1995 and fewer than 1% of the people in this fourm watched those matches. I don't think they were even on Telemundo. We were THE suprise team of the tournament. Our 4th place finish was the equivalent of the Danes winning Euro 92.

    4. Winning in Austria right before WC 1998. Using the 3-6-1. That was the first time we saw the 3-6-1 and just about everyone in the US Soccer community thought we were on to great things.

    Yes. You can hold that miserable WC 1998 against him. Yes, he did lose control of the team. But remember, the core of that team had been together for nearly 8 years by that point. Given all the pretty rivalries, egos and other stuff that build up over that time, I would bet any coach would have had a hard time keeping that team together.

    So hold France 1998 against him, but also give him credit for all the good he did. It was him, not Arena who took us on our first steps toward international respectability.

    Sachin
     
  13. Red Card

    Red Card Member+

    Mar 3, 1999
    Club:
    New York Red Bulls
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    People here are saying he was a conservative coach. Looking back today on SS' WC squad, it seems they were missing defensive midfielders. That's where they broke down. Deering and Maissoneuve were the only two he had and he chose not to use either against Iran where we had a good chance to win. Harkes was kicked off the team for reasons we still don't know why. Sorber the def mid from 94 was not picked for the team.

    SS overloaded on fullbacks: Dooley, Pope, Regis, Agoos, Hejduk, Burns, Balboa and Lalas. But only 2 inexperienced def mids.

    One of the first things Arena did when he took over was to start the process for Armas to get cleared by concacaf.

    http://fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/02/en/pf/h/pwc/mr/8754.html
     
  14. Wahoo

    Wahoo New Member

    Aug 15, 2001
    Seattle, USA
    I'm one of those that applauded the way the team played for Sampson early on. Heck, if I recall correctly, he was only intended to be an interim coach, but the team played very well for him after being shackled by Bora (I'm not taking shots at Bora either... his style isn't mine though) and after a few good efforts he was given the job to keep.

    My biggest fault with Sampson seemed an inability to modify the game once in progress if things weren't going his way. The Austria match was good from start to finish, he put the right players onthe field that day and looked good. The problem was when he put the wrong players or had a poor strategy at the beginning... it seemed he didn't know how to change tactics or formations on the fly.

    Again, not a bad coach, but not spectacular.
     
  15. DamonEsquire

    DamonEsquire BigSoccer Supporter

    Sep 16, 2002
    Kentucky
    Club:
    Leeds United AFC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Generalization apply. Team U.S.A. beat islander during qualification. Something like 8-0. Team U.S.A. slightly squeak by islander in qualification of differentness. I think. Subtantial this is more toward career with Team U.S.A. Then lose at World Cup 1998. Formation is risky. If succession appeal, then aftermentioned would not apply. I bet. Assemblage might lead into Africa or orential club perhaps.
     
  16. willytc1066

    willytc1066 New Member

    Mar 6, 2001
    If UCLA had hired him, I would have burned my degree.
     
  17. Lord15

    Lord15 New Member

    Jun 20, 2001
    Southeast

    Here. Here.

    I hope Sampson get a MLS gig. He'll immediately be one of the better coaches in the league.

    We need to stop pissing on everything pre-Bruce. Coaches and Players.
     
  18. dfb547490

    dfb547490 New Member

    Feb 9, 2000
    The Heights
    I take Kinnear, Schmid, Gansler, Sarachan, Bradley, Nicol, and Clarke over that clown any day.
     
  19. Eliezar

    Eliezar Member+

    Jan 27, 2002
    Houston
    Club:
    12 de Octubre
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Who led the US to a 3-0 victory over Argentina? SS
    Who led the US to a better WCQ campaign Arena or SS? SS
    Who led the US to a victory over Brazil? SS
    Who uses a 3-6-1 or a 4-5-1? A ton of teams and AC Milan during their Dutch glory days liked to clog the midfield and leave Van Basten alone up top cuz he'd still score. The problem of course was that the US didn't have a Van Basten, Ronaldo, or RVN to play alone up top and our midfielders weren't getting into dangerous positions.

    SS did some things that backfired (isolating the team in France, Mike Burns, etc) had some poor luck (banged up key players like Wynalda and Ramos), and he had players that Bruce Arena called 'cancers' on his roster that undermined the team unity and spirit. He also got decieved by the Austria game.

    However, saying Steve is not a good coach is just odd and baseless as he really took us forward from Boraball to beating Argentina and knocking out Mexico in the copa america, by the way I believe we lost in the semifinal to Brazil but were taking the game to them for a long stretch which is something unheard of in our games against Brazil (fuzzy memory now).

    Its a shame he got fired for the two games against Cuba, but understandable. Cuba is one of the top 10 teams in CONCACAF right now (QF last Gold Cup and did decent the one before) and is capable of getting a result. Costa Rica may not make the hex this year because Bora still has some magic, Guatemala does have the little fish, and Canada's full squad can get a result against anybody in concacaf. If they don't it may in fact be BECAUSE they fired someone who has proven he can get results in concacaf qualifying both home and away.
     
  20. Lloyd Heilbrunn

    Lloyd Heilbrunn Member+

    Feb 11, 2002
    Jupiter, Fl.
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Re: Sampson fired

    Or the Rapids....
     
  21. Dan Loney

    Dan Loney BigSoccer Supporter

    Mar 10, 2000
    Cincilluminati
    Club:
    Los Angeles Sol
    Nat'l Team:
    Philippines
    Flaming out of qualifying with an above-average CR team is a lot more distressing than folding under the intense pressure of taking an over-the-hill US team to the World Cup. The only way Sampson recovers his reputation is (a) to take some US team to a title, preferably one above AYSO level, and (b) if Cuba makes it to the Hex. For all we know, Cuba's really really good this cycle.

    If it was the 1995 World Cup, instead of the 1998 World Cup, Sampson would already be in the Hall of Fame. But, unsurprisingly, the players at the time tend to diminish Sampson's role in Copa America. Since 1995 was before they invented television and the printing press, we'll have to take the word of whoever is telling the story these days, I suppose. Maybe people have better archives than I do, but my only memory of the 1995 Copa, apart from the scores, was grainy footage of Alexi Lalas that looked like it was shot from the Hubble.

    In 1998, he should have given Balboa the armband, and the starting position, ahead of Dooley, but there were people who didn't realize that until afterwards (hello). He should have put McBride up top ahead of Waldo and Wegerle, but Waldo should have been in his prime, and Weggers misled us all in qualifying that he still had it. (So did Dooley, come to think of it.) And he badly, badly misunderestimated Iran. So did nearly all of us, but not to the point of starting Tab Ramos and Joe-Max Moore as freaking d-mids.

    He should have been wiser and more experienced this time around, though. But coaches, like matter and energy, can never be destroyed. Queiroz and Bora still find work, and they both have hideous-ass Metrostars teams staining their resumes. (Actually, they probably don't mention the Metrostars in job interviews. They probably tell chairmen they were in prison in the late 90's, or something.)
     
  22. lurking

    lurking Member+

    Feb 9, 2002
    Club:
    San Jose Earthquakes
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Well, CR hasnt flamed out yet, and we will never know if Cuba could have made it to the Hex. ;)

    Now if you had written, "(b) if Costa Rica flames out without making the Hex. For all we know, CR is just really really average right now as the players arent in good form."
     
  23. Sachin

    Sachin New Member

    Jan 14, 2000
    La Norte
    Club:
    DC United
    Uh... Dan, you need to check your Premise B. I think that one's impossible.

    Sampson did lead Costa Rica by Cuba, just barely though.

    Sachin
     
  24. Adam Zebrowski

    Adam Zebrowski New Member

    May 28, 1999
    Saw about 20 minutes of the Cuba-CR match and cuba was able to get behind the CR defense a couple times, and the overall possession was fairly equal.

    what's the over under on how many more firings will occur in san jose??
     
  25. Rommul

    Rommul Member

    Aug 26, 2003
    NYC
    First I want to say to all the old geezers talking about these old USMNT campaigns.....keep it up!

    This is good stuff.

    Secondly I will say for the second time the rumors I heard said he was booted off for sleeping with some teammates lady.
     

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