Comments on: Gulati Defends Arena

By: What!!!

What!!! — Wed, 12 Jul 2006 02:42:36 +0000

This place is boring. Smells like the US soccer team really have no talents, good luck in the next four years.

By: Marcus

Marcus — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 07:17:18 +0000

HELLO

By: Rhythmwize

Rhythmwize — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 02:01:03 +0000

Martin sey: Face it, none of the high-flying, very competent, European coaches are likely to do much better than Coach Arena because the fabric from which the team is to be woven is not likely to be much stronger four years from now.
…………………………..
Your assuming that Arena selected the best players available…Based on our results, that assumption is highly questionable.

By: Martin

Martin — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 07:08:20 +0000

Soccer is less about coaching and more about playing than most American sports, which tend to feature the coach as the chessmaster manipulating the pawns on the field. The most attractive thing about soccer to me as a spectator is that the players must constantly make decisions in a very fluid environment. Some of those decisions will be poor ones. Some not. The coach must look for players who make more good choices than bad. Success on the field directly results from the availability and identification of such players.

Face it, none of the high-flying, very competent, European coaches are likely to do much better than Coach Arena because the fabric from which the team is to be woven is not likely to be much stronger four years from now.

Whatever faults it might have, the MLS has contributed greatly to the improvement in the MNT and that team has definitely improved. We no longer field a semi-pro mixture of Europeon based players and amatuers; we field a professional team. For the improved fitness levels alone, the MLS deserves our sincere thanks. Improvement in our professional league is the only path I see to an improved national team. When I watch an MLS game on TV and see 5000 fans, I worry about the survival of the league. When I still lived in the US, I was living about 2-1/2 hours from Foxboro but tried to travel to at least 2 or 3 games a year. Before that, when the league first formed, I did the same from OKC to Dallas (about 4 hours by the time one got into the Cotton Bowl). I think as fans and citizens, we owe support to the league at whatever level time and other resources permit. Like it or not, they are the future on the MNT.

By: JEI

JEI — Thu, 06 Jul 2006 20:36:46 +0000

ETucker, your analogy is, to a certain extent, quite apt. As Davies and others have said, we lack bona fide, transcendent star players. In that respect, your point is very well taken and it’s true that any coach can only take a so-so team so far.
But, can’t it also be said that international experience of the highest caliber is exactly what the US team really needs? It’s true that we need more talented players, but several teams in Germany got by when they were short on talent. I guess what I’m saying is that a coach who has succeeded at the highest levels has at least some knowledge to impart to players who: are reluctant to take a risk playing in Europe, might need to move to a stronger European league, or who lack that extra something to make the A-team for their club?

By: ETucker

ETucker — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 19:57:09 +0000

Guys, here’s an NBA example.

Three years ago, Pat Riley coached the Miami Heat. They were god awful and missed the playoffs.

This year, they have Shaq and Dwayne Wade, and Pat Riley wins a championship. Did Pat Riley magically become a better coach in two years?

By: Romario

Romario — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 09:41:47 +0000

The only leader that I know made useless people be leaders was Christ. Come on!!. We can not blame a coach who has made miracles recruiting a few guys that are trying to do their best. Where is the US Soccer Federation? How can you win when the resources you have are a few guys with a lot of love for this country but skills. How did these guys make the National team? Times changes my friends ,and the question is how much are you doing for the game. What are you doing for your little league in your neighborhood?.

By: Rick Shepherd

Rick Shepherd — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 05:52:44 +0000

Arena’s folly was to have two slow dopes like Pope and Oyewenu Iguchi as defenders, these 2 guys are totally clueless and never saw the Czech republic guys. His fowards never scored a single goal and Arena choked and never made the correct changes at the correct times.
We need a world class coach to take our team to the top.
I believe Arena has done all he can.

By: Abe

Abe — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 00:10:02 +0000

The sad reality on this world cup, is that the USA team did not got very far, dont blame the players, mr Sunil Gulati,put his bet by putting a heavy responsability on Bruce Arena, I wrote about this before
on the last World Cup held in France, back then it was Mr Sampson, after the patetic USA performance in FRance, it should it been a wake up call, You can not put the responsability of preparing a USA national team for a World class event like the World Cup with a second rate coach, Mr Arena might be good to train a high school team for cheering soccer moms to watch, but not for the World Cup,after that lost at the Worl Cup in France, four years ago, I wrote them and suggested, if you people want the US Team to be among the best in the World, you most get the best coach in the world that money can buy, any way the Us Soccer Federation can afford the best, but no!! they wasted four years and valuable time to prepare for this World Cup with Mr Arena, let me tell you the sad reality is that he is very far from being a World Class Coach that has the confidence and the true knowledge that it takes to guide a national team to the finals against the best and tougher teams of the world, currently there are several reputed high class coachs on the world available to take the US Team to Victory, dont seatle for a second rate coach when you can get the best there is, get a Brazilian Argentinian, or a British Coach with World Cup experience and proven track records, and start working and trainning hard,if you want to see results and achived goals on the international soccer fields, the US can not afford to waste four more years at the hands of an Amateur Wannabe World Cup Coach, once again I tell you dont blame the players,and start by putting your feet on solid ground and face the reality and start looking for the Best Coach Now!!

By: Adam

Adam — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 10:29:08 +0000

Peter-

It was very clear that the problem was the mental lapses the players had and not the coaches. You can’t blame Bruce for every mistake his players make when they know better. The players play, and they didn’t play well enough under the circumstances they were given.

It’s not the end of the world. If anything, it is a good indication of how far american soccer has come, led by Bruce. Who would have thought even 4 years ago, that USA fans would be so irrate to the point of idiocy at their team not making it out of the toughest group in the WC and tying Italy with 9 players. Someone said, it’s good to be Ukraine. After getting hammered by Spain, they play Saudia Arabia and Tunisia. USA was not that lucky.