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Bruce almighty Confident Arena is still U.S. soccer's biggest personalityPosted: Thursday May 15, 2003 3:10 PM
Over the past six years, I've interviewed U.S. national team coach Bruce Arena in a lot of places. A bar in Barbados. A high-rise hotel in Seoul. Poolside in Guadalajara. Hell, we've talked at his kitchen table in Northern Virginia (where he has the local station that broadcasts the Howard Stern show programmed into his radio presets). None of our sit-downs, however, had taken place with Il Bruce laid out on a training table receiving post-op therapy -- at least not until last week, when we met in Houston before the U.S.'s scoreless tie against Mexico. Arena recently underwent reconstructive surgery on his left knee, and it was odd to see the Supremely Confident One hooked up to some gizmo that beeped a lot and periodically caused him to grimace and blurt out stuff like, "Damn, that hurt!" I can make a strong argument that the best American coach of 2002 -- in any sport -- was Arena, who 1) turned the last-place team from World Cup '98 into a quarterfinalist four years later, 2) made more gutty (and successful) lineup changes than any other World Cup '02 coach, and 3) did as much as anyone to make sure American soccer is now taken more seriously worldwide. Arena isn't without his flaws, of course. The same guy who can be so thoughtful in one-on-one interviews often morphs into an arrogant Bill Parcells clone in larger media settings, beginning his sentences with an exasperated "Obviously, ..." (It's not for nothing that I rarely take notes at his press conferences.) Arena can be extremely difficult to work for if you're part of his staff. And he can be overly forgiving with "his guys," as we saw with Jeff Agoos in South Korea. As Arena likes to say, "It's all part of it," which is why all this makes him such a fascinating, exceedingly complex guy. He hated the first story I ever wrote about him -- a spring 1998 Sports Illustrated piece that began by calling then D.C. United boss Arena "the best soccer coach in America." (Keep in mind, Steve Sampson was still the U.S. coach at the time.) Then again, the headline was AMAZINGLY GRACELESS, so that may have had something to do with it. But this much is inarguable: Arena is always accessible, his players (with few exceptions) love him, and they also perform for him. Five years into his tenure, he remains the biggest personality in American soccer. Which is why, with two international tournaments looming in the summer months and World Cup qualifying beginning early next year, we sat down together in Houston. Some of the highlights of our conversation:
"Is that the strongest possible team? No," Arena says. "But we'll have a competitive group. I hold the Gold Cup [in July] as being a little more important than Confederations Cup. It's in our confederation, and we have to establish ourselves as one of the top teams in order to qualify. Whatever happens in France is immaterial. I don't even know why they have that tournament. The timing is poor after a World Cup and a long season. The Spanish league is going into June. How can those players take Confederations Cup seriously?" What does all this mean? Well, for one, goalkeeper Tim Howard should get his first big chance to play on the European stage. A number of other young players will get more international experience -- particularly since the three-games-in-five-days schedule (against Turkey, Brazil and Cameroon) will force Arena to use all his players. And it should be an opportunity for Claudio Reyna to return. Arena is hoping Reyna will be ready to play after a serious knee injury caused him to miss most of his club season. Keep in mind, too, that Arena's pooh-poohing of the Confed Cup may just be a bunch of spin in advance of a possible three-and-out against some tough opponents, whether or not Brazil has Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. (Arena doesn't expect them to be there.) "It's still an important competition in terms of evaluating our players," Arena allows, "and it's going to be good competition. Believe me, the Brazilian players who are there will still be pretty good."
"It doesn't mean you'll qualify, but you're better prepared this time than last time. Any time you bring in a new coach, you're starting from scratch. And we're not starting from scratch."
As was clear in the game against Mexico, though, the U.S. needs more imagination in the midfield, the kind of spark that only Reyna and O'Brien appear ready to provide. If Reyna does indeed join the team for Confederations Cup, it'll be interesting to see whether he plays in the middle (where he could take over that task) or at right back (the spot he played against Mexico in last year's World Cup and where I believe his long-term future with the national team lies). As for this week's questions, I had no idea I'd get several queries asking for pictures of my wife after I mentioned that the 'Bag Lady looks similar to the lead character from Bend It Like Beckham. (Settle down now, guys.) Apologies, but the Lady wishes to remain anonymous. Onward ...
Regarding Gilles Grimandi and his departure from the Colorado Rapids: How is it that, for whatever reason, this year their bigtime signing blows up in their faces, and last year the same thing happened with Daniel Amokachi? What a track record! Is there something strange about the coach or the team that puts people off?
Good question, Nicholas. Colorado has some of the friendliest guys in MLS (Chris Henderson, Robin Fraser, Pablo Mastroeni), so I have a hard time thinking they had anything to do with Grimandi returning home to France before the season even started. Nor do I think any friction with coach Tim Hankinson played a big role in Grimandi's decision. But if you're looking for any parallels between Grimandi and Amokachi, both guys showed up out of shape and were brutalized by the thin Rocky Mountain air, which contributed to their quick exits. At the same time, I'm not about to let Hankinson completely off the hook here. When this starts to become a pattern, you have to question his thought process in signing these guys. The way things are going for Colorado, though -- only one point all season so far -- Hankinson may not be around long enough to make amends.
Who is being asked to fill that holding mid role that Reyna currently fills? I am a big fan of attacking soccer, but the thing that stuck out to me against Mexico was the lack of midfield transition on defense to offense. The U.S. seemed to be missing that field general who holds the team together as it moves up and down the field.
Well, David, as much as I like them for their defensive-mid attributes, it's never a good sign when Mastroeni and Chris Armas start together in the midfield, as they did against Mexico. For that matter, though, none of the U.S. players combined to play with the kind of precision that the Mexicans showed during flashes of the match -- not surprising, of course, since the U.S. had benefited from only a couple of days training together beforehand. To answer your question more specifically, the holding mid role you're talking about is O'Brien's to lose.
What is going on with the Women's World Cup? Epidemic curves are either a small ramp or a sharp exponential curve. If SARS goes the way of the 12 Monkeys, the country in which they play won't matter. If SARS calms down, China will have been hustled out of having a home-field advantage and the economic benefits. On this side of the Pacific, how was the U.S. -- where sporting venues are booked until the end of time -- able to pull together a proposal so much faster than every other country?
I think you answered your own question there, Dean, when you said "if" the SARS threat calms down. There's enough question about whether that will happen that FIFA had to move the tournament. (You don't see the Chinese protesting the decision, do you?) As for the U.S.'s response, several possible sites won't be available, which means the WWC will likely take place in a smaller number of stadiums than it did in 1999. All credit to the USSF and MLS for putting together a credible proposal in such a short time, which is why FIFA prez Sepp Blatter said this week that the U.S. will likely get the nod.
What do you make of all the buzz around Brad Friedel? After his deserved selection to the PFA [All Premier League] team there is wide speculation about a move to Man U or Arsenal. Is this a case of where there's smoke there's fire, or do you see Friedel staying put? (Also, just for the record, the American ex-pats here don't know why he talks the way he does.)
The head money man at Blackburn Rovers came out this week and said Friedel is "not for sale" -- but you and I both know that everything has a price tag, and the fact that this was announced shows that there is interest in Friedel out there. When I talked to Brad a couple months ago, I asked him if he expected any demand for his services after the season, and he said, "Possibly." He won't come cheap, though, having just signed a new contract last year that runs through 2006. Stay tuned. And in case you run into Brad, don't bring up the accent thing. It's kind of a sore subject.
Nine random things
On CD: While we're in a Mexican state of mind, check out Molotov's "Dónde jugarán las niñas?" Fun, catchy stuff -- and bilingual, too. Even the swear words. On DVD: Monsoon Wedding. The 'Bag Lady got us onto Mira Nair movies, and this one -- about a huge Punjabi family preparing for a wedding -- may be her best and funniest.
Keep the questions coming, folks. (Particularly any about the U.S. domestic leagues, which will be the focus of our next column.) See you in two weeks! Sports Illustrated senior writer Grant Wahl keeps you up to date with the world of U.S. soccer at SI.com. To send Wahl a comment, question or story idea, click here.
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