Yeah, in a way ... I mean, if they were any good they wouldn’t be coaching over here right Don’t get me wrong, I’m fine with hiring US coaches, it’s not rocket science. Just hold them accountable wherever they come from. Klinsmann should have been fired after not making the Gold Cup Finals and then losing to Mexico in the playoff for the Confeds Cup. It was obvious the wheels were coming off then.
How were the wheels coming off when a year later we were playing for the 3rd place match at Copa 100?
I think you put up an excellent post. I agree 100%. I believe that experience in a top level is important but have always felt, as you do, that the best candidates for coaching are those that have been forced to understand the game better and have not been able to succeed primarily on raw talent and especially athleticism.
https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2018/09/03/torrent-praises-berhalter-after-crew-sc-best-nycfc Vieira and Martino have also praised 3G.
The team looked like complete s*it and wasn't even close to being competitive in the Gold Cup and against Mexico. And, they went in to the whole thing with a strong advantage to qualify for the Confederations Cup yet managed to give it away with barely a yelp. That was the point I began to turn against Klinsmann.
The team's successful Copa did indeed show the wheels weren't coming off. The problem highlighted by the Gold Cup was that of the 'missing generation', which constituted a ticking time bomb neither JK nor Arena could diffuse. Too many young players weren't ready or simply were never going to be good enough.
Turning away from Klinsmann was a reasonable choice on your part. After all managers are judged on results and Klinsmann at that point was not getting the results we wanted. Just make sure that a change puts you in a better place. Are we in a better place? I came to different conclusions after the GC and CONCACAF Cup. The GC told me that we were going to be in a world of hurt against quality teams without fully fit Jones, Cameron, and Bedoya. The performances a year later at Copa 100 when those players were fit confirmed my suspicions. Not much as changed.
Yeah, JK eschewed the needed tweeking of his philosophy to double down on milking the last bit of juice out of the vets. Fortunately, the young players now coming through look to offer more hope than their GC'15 counterparts.