End of the affair: Bradley fired as US coach

Photo credit: AP

Bob Bradley was fired as coach of the US national soccer team today. When the referee called full time at the 2011 Concacaf Gold Cup with the Mexico team up 4-2 on the United States, some of us out there thought his days were numbered. But nothing happened. Days passed and international friendlies were announced (versus Mexico on the 10th), Copa America started and the US ladies made it to the final.

But today was different. A day after the thrashing of the MLS All-Stars at the hands of Manchester United, a symphony of news flashes gave us word that US Soccer had severed ties with Bob Bradley. But why not sooner? Time for searching and hiring a new man for the job? And yes, it seems they have Bradley's successor already with a "further announcement" on Friday.

Let's reflect a bit on today's events. What were the pros and cons of Bob Bradley? To start, his record was 43-25-13, winning a Gold Cup title, finishing in second place at the Confederations Cup and in the final 16 at the World Cup after winning the group over England. Also to his credit: the blossoming of Donovan and Dempsey, solidification of Michael Bradley, Onyewu, Howard and Bocanegra, and the addition of game-changers like Altidore, Agudelo, Jermaine Jones, Bedoya and Timmy Chandler. All in all, quite the resume.

Conversely, the national team has become quite stale after the World Cup and a 5-4-4 record this year. There is no inventiveness on the pitch and his tactics have been eviscerated by opposing squads. Do credit Mexico on their win, however. Their "golden generation" has come to life and, somehow, a run at the World Cup semifinals in 2014 isn't out of the question.

But back to Bradley. In reality, second term coaches (1 term being a world cup cycle) never quite do well in their reprisal as managers of national teams. A national soccer team is a completely different animal from club competition in soccer and, for that matter, other sports. There are only limited times in which you have your players each year and individuals that are central to the national team may not be playing at all for their club sides. Just the length of time alone does away with continuity. There's no "rebuilding season" or even "relegation battle." Other examples abound: Bruce Arena (2003-2006, early exit from 2006), Marcelo Lippi (Italian champions in 2006, eliminated in group stage in 2010), Sven Goran Erickson (English team became stale and lost flair in 2006).

So it's a new beginning for US Soccer. Who will be our coach? Juergen Klinsmann? Guus Hiddink? Sigi Schmid? Jason Kreis? Carlo Ancelotti? Marcelo Lippi? Claudio Reyna? All good candidates but my preference is a foreign coach right now. Someone that understands the larger scale of things. Jason Kreis is food for thought but I'd like him to have a few more titles and seasons with Real Salt Lake. Right now is too soon for the international arena. Collegiate experience, such as Arena had as a coach in college soccer, can only take us so far since a vast majority of our players are now in world-renowned teams and leagues. Arena and Bradley took this style of coaching to its very limit and with pleasant results. But a new line of thinking is needed.

So, we bid you adieu, Coach Bradley. You made us proud and made us believe. You brought us exhilaration, consolation and fantasy. We thank you for your hard work and we know you'll succeed wherever you go. No hard feelings either. Sometimes you just have to say "time's up."

One US player who will not win the World Cup

It's Jersey-born, Italian-American Giuseppe Rossi. The US media (ESPN) had written a piece about America's "Best hope at the World Cup." Little did they know that head coach Lippi would drop the American from the final 23 players. The ESPN piece was written weeks ago and Rossi had been included in the preliminary 28-man squad.

Rossi (23, plays for Villareal) is a name familiar with die-hard US soccer fans, especially after last summer's 3-1 pounding by Italy at the Confederations Cup. There was much outrage at his flagrant celebration after scoring two goals on his home country. He had decided to turn down being in Bruce Arena's preliminary squad for World Cup 2006. We must admit that he would probably start alongside Altidore for the US. Rossi instead decided to play for Italy and did so at every youth level before graduating to the senior team. There, he scored three goals last year.

Perhaps Lippi thought that Rossi hadn't contributed much to Italy lately. Perhaps Fabio Quagliarella was a better option in Lippi's scheme. As much as US fans can gloat about "karma," we have to admit that it would have been nice to have an American win the Cup, even if playing for another country. It's also sad for him given the recent death of his father. In any case, there is still another player with an outside chance at going deep into the tournament: Neven Subotic. Subotic opted to play for Serbia even though the US approached him repeatedly. Before your anger grows towards "defectors," remember that Jose Francisco Torres chose USA over Mexico. He showed glimpses of growth as a player against Turkey and is in strong contention to start next to Michael Bradley in the midfield.