Giving Klinsmann His Due (If He's Owed It)

I know I've been incredibly wishy-washy about Jurgen Klinsmann over the years here.

Aside: You may ask: "Who cares about Klinsmann at this point? He's gone. Arena's got the men's team headed in the right direction. Enough is enough." But it's not, because ... well, because I've been searching in vain for something that interests me enough to post about, and this is where I landed. With the enigma that is Klinsmann.

I defended Klinsmann's decision to not include Landon Donovan in the 2014 World Cup roster, then admitted that it may have been a mistake. I took his side when critics accused him of being too European (or un-American), then took him to task for trying to assert ownership of the uniquely American traits of his team and players.

Ultimately, even though I liked the energy and inventiveness he brought to the position of National Team coach, I agreed that Coach Klinsmann needed to go based upon the U.S. team's miserable results in the first two matches of The Hex CONCACAF qualifying.

But I'm wondering now if his defense of his performance after he was let go, that his time with the team and its abrupt end was "an incomplete picture" was closer to the truth than we may have suspected at the time. At least as far as his second job, as technical director of all of the U.S. Men's teams, is concerned.

A bemused Klinsmann at a press conference
(photo from zimbio.com)

The recent showings by the U.S. Men's U-20 and U-17 teams have led me to think that Klinsmann was undervalued as a developer of young players, or at least of putting a system in place to help them succeed. While there are a variety of factors that no doubt play into the recent successes of our national teams with a "U" in front of them (MLS youth programs, more young players turning pro rather than going to college, more youth players signing with European clubs while young, etc.), I can't help but think that Klinsmann had something to do with the improvement, and indeed some of the other factors listed above.

Although his criticism of MLS was sometimes unwarranted and generally just not helpful, whether because of that criticism or just the organic growth of the league and its teams, much of the improvement in our national youth teams is due to the fact that most of the players at the U-17 level up are now professionals, a far cry from 10 years ago. It was Klinsmann who beat the drums for the professional development of young players (admittedly, at the expense of college soccer).

By the same token, the fact that more and more young Americans are going to Europe to play must play a role in the overall improvement of their national teams, not only from a technical aspect, but also simply from a comfort level of playing against the best in the world on a weekly basis. One has to look no farther than Christian Pulisic, who age-wise is eligible to be playing in the U-20 World Cup now being held in South Korea, but talent-wise has already graduated to the full men's team, to see the added value in playing professionally in one of the best leagues in the world (in his case, the German Bundesliga).  Again, it was Klinsmann who beat the drums for players to play professionally at the highest level (i.e., in Europe) although this again put him at odds with our American soccer establishment (such as it is) in the MLS.

The genesis of this post is the U-20 World Cup, in which, to this point, the Americans have never looked overmatched, have been inventive going forward, and have actually possessed the ball for long periods of time! After going down 2-0 in the first game against Ecuador, the U.S. fought back to tie at two, only for a gaffe/howler/_______ (insert English football phrase you deem most suitable) by American goalkeeper ... (wait for it ...) Jonathan Klinsmann, only to then score again in the fourth minute of extra time to earn a tie.

The Young Yanks then beat Senegal 1-0 and tied Saudi Arabia 1-1 after a series of incredibly bad refereeing decision that left them a man down for 55 minutes and three men down (due to yellow card accumulation) for the knockout stage match against New Zealand. And all of this was accomplished after the team's primary playmaker, Gedion Zelalem, was subbed off with an apparently serious knee injury only half of an hour into the Ecuador match.

While the group stage was encouraging, the New Zealand match was a revelation. Despite starting three players who had seen little playing time to that point, the Americans dismantled the Kiwis 6-0, as 17 year-old U.S. starlet (hauling out all the Brit football terms here) Josh Sargent scored his fourth goal of the tournament, and five others chipped in a tally as well.

As is always the case, Sargent's goal scoring has attracted much of the media attention (and interest from another Bundesliga club). But the work of those under coach Tab Ramos's guidance in the midfield and defense has been equally admirable.  Even operating without Zelalem, the team has looked confident on the ball and, except for the first half hour against Ecuador, preternaturally poised.

Similarly, the U-17 team (led by Sargent) had a good run in CONCACAF qualifying, winning a spot in that World Cup by tromping Cuba 6-2 before falling 5-4 in penalty kicks to Mexico in the Final.

Maybe it's the fact that Jurgen Klinsmann has been present for the U.S. U-20 World Cup matches, watching his son perform well (for the most part) in goal, that has led me to think of him a little more kindly and want to give him credit for our recent success at the youth levels. But I can't shake the feeling that, while Dad is present, his director ghost is too, and is more than a little pleased to see that his work is bearing fruit.

Glimmers of Hope

So what are we to think about the U.S. Men's National soccer team headed into the Copa America (or Copa Centenario, if you prefer)?

Consecutive wins against South American opponents in the past week? Good.

Those wins coming against traditional CONMEBOL minnows Ecuador and Bolivia? Not so good.

Four straight wins and a 6-1 record so far in 2016? Good.

The loss being in World Cup qualifying to Guatemala in a dismal 2-0 performance? Not good at all.

The introduction of new, exciting players like Darlington Nagbe, Christian Pulisic, and Steve Burnbaum? Good.

Continuing to rely on old, and old guard, players like Jermaine Jones and Kyle Beckerman, particularly in the demanding role of center midfielder? Not very good.

Obviously the upcoming Copa America will give us more information on where the national team is, and where it might be going, in World Cup qualifying and, hopefully, the 2018 World Cup itself. The recent wins have certainly quelled, for now, the anti-Klinsmann drumbeat that reached a crescendo after losses to Jamaica in the Gold Cup and Mexico in the play-in for the Confederations Cup last year.

While they are far from a guarantee for success in the upcoming Copa America, which will be against stiffer competition in a more meaningful setting, the Americans' luck appears to be turning after a dismal 2015. And not just on the field.

The U.S.'s opportunity to participate in the Copa, and indeed the entire tournament, was cast into doubt by the indictment or arrest of many top CONMEBOL and CONCACAF officials last summer and additional indictments for Traffic Sports, a major player in organizing (and skimming graft from) both the Gold Cup and Copa America. The importance of the tournament as preparation for the next World Cup cannot be understated, particularly after the ignominious denial of the chance to play in the Confederations Cup, participation in which was long touted by Klinsmann as essential to success in Russia, until it wasn't.

But whether through sheer will to actually celebrate the 100th anniversary of the competition, or the unappealing prospect of losing millions of dollars of revenue from the target-rich U.S. soccer market, the tournament will go on (although perhaps without Argentina).

While Klinsmann has talked about bringing new or younger players along slowly (hence not starting Nagbe or Pulisic against either Ecuador or Bolivia), this tournament seems the ideal opportunity to start determining whether they will be able to withstand the pressure of top flight competition in CONCACAF World Cup qualifying, particularly once it moves to the final stage (known as The Hex because of its six teams, the top three of which will qualify for the World Cup, and the fourth place team of which will advance to a playoff against the fifth place team from Asia).

The back line seems set with John Brooks and Geoff Cameron (assuming he's healthy) in the center of defense and Fabian Johnson and DeAndre Yedlin on the wings. Bobby Wood, Gyasi Zardes, and Clint Dempsey appear ready to play up front in some combination (particularly with the surprise exclusion of Jordan Morris from the squad) with Pulisic likely to come off the bench and Chris Wondolowski available to poach a last minute goal in a pinch. 



Pulisic celebrates his goal against Bolivia, which made him the
youngest goalscorer for the U.S. Men in the modern era.
(photo from www.dailymail.co.uk)

That leaves three players to man the midfield (although Zardes could play wing or Dempsey as a withdrawn forward or attacking midfielder at the top of a diamond). Michael Bradley is a shoo-in, of course. Alejandro Bedoya was, for my money, perhaps the Yanks' best player against Bolivia and seems unlikely to be left out of the starting 11 (as long as Klinsmann doesn't insist that he play in the back).

There has to be some bite, which Jones normally provides. Klinsmann could go with two defensive mids with Jones and Beckerman, but that seems unlikely, particularly given Beckerman's lack of mobility. Equally unlikely is abandoning the defense altogether and playing both Nagbe and Bedoya along with Bradley.

While Jones is an acceptable choice this summer, it's hard to see him as capable of being one in Russia. I'd like to see Klinsmann try Bradley at the bottom of a diamond with Nagbe and Bedoya the linking midfielders and Dempsey at the tip. But that's unlikely to happen since Klinsmann has insisted for more than two years now that Bradley's best position is up the field leading the attack, and for the most part Bradley has proved him right.

Another option would be to recognize that Dempsey may be too old by the time 2018 comes around and put Bradley at the top, with Nagbe and Bedoya behind, Cameron in the defensive/deep-lying mid position, and Burnbaum or Matt Besler in the center of defense with Brooks.

Given the heat that Klinsmann took last year over the team's performance it's understandable that he is reluctant to sacrifice results for experimentation in the Copa. But, in the long-term, that may be exactly what this team needs. Regardless, it's nice to talk about the options available to him, which seemed in very short supply last fall.