Despite the doom and gloom after USA failed to qualify for the WC, this article does a nice job discussing the American youth in Europe....specifically Germany. More American youth playing in Europe than ever before (even if most aren't on 1st teams yet). More Americans choosing to play in Germany and Germany choosing to sign more Americans than ever before https://theathletic.com/453402/2018/07/31/the-future-of-american-soccer-is-in-germany/
The Jesse Marsch thing is very interesting though. They also have to get better ref training and ship them over to the States. Disciplined players who can handle a yellow card, dun get fouled out are also important. Refs that dun send you packing because of couple average fouls. Gotta have more guys with Croatian or French roots. Croats are fighters and French are just talents.
US Soccer Youtube page did an interview with all the rising stars on the team, didnt realize so many play overseas.
I also like the move to bring Earnie Stewart into the fold as the GM of the USMNT. Someone who grew up in Holland and understands the youth systems...but also has a good understanding of the American player. I thought there would be more news coming out on potential head coach candidates but I trust that the process is in better hands than having Gulati manage it. The only name I've really heard rumored is Osorio. In terms of the kids...I'm really excited to see what this younger generation is going to bring. In a way, they're the anti-Landon Donovan's. Willing to go over and stay over. Willing to do it the harder way. I know Landon spent a part of his youth in Germany but it was clear he wasn't comfortable there and didn't like the everyday fight you have to put up to earn playing time. I've said it time and time again. Had Freddy Adu gone to Europe when his family was given the chance before he got drafted, we'd be talking about the best American player ever. He absolutely had the talent. It was ruined with his choice to play in the MLS. He never got a chance to learn how to be a pro before becoming a pro. The kids going over early are doing it right. They will be light years ahead of what we know the best players in US history to be at the same ages. I'm especially excited to see what becomes of Timothy Weah. With his pedigree and his incredible talent, he's going to be a lot of fun to watch. I hope he doesn't spend the season sitting on PSG's bench. I think he's going to be one of their first options after Neymar, Cavani, and Mbappe.
I don't think he's technically cap-tied yet as he's only played in friendlies for the senior team...but he has certainly identified as American and has made statements that he wants to be the best American player ever.
France is stacked at every possible position and Liberia is not a great football country overall. USMNT makes too much sense.
Talent hasn't been the problem with US Soccer, our collegiate fascination and bad management has been for decades. Love or hate Jürgen Klinsmann, but he was great for US Soccer for no other reason than to wake people up to the fact that the MLS is a dead end, and that collegiate soccer holds US Soccer back. The only way US Soccer will ever succeed, is for our best players to play overseas, and to take part in club academies at an early age... just like the rest of the world. The MLS, is the single biggest enemy to the US ever being good at the game. Our league is different than literally every other major soccer league in the world, and it is ridiculous. From top to bottom, the MLS is a laughingstock... and this is coming from someone who was a Dynamo season ticket holder for 4+ seasons. Their salary/ownership structure is best for making a buck, not making the best league and recruiting the best players... and don't even get me started on the playoff system, and lack of relegation... In our efforts to Americanize the game, we've ruined generations of US soccer players.
I watch some MLS games in the summer out of sheer boredom. It is like watching a game of human foosball. There are maybe only a couple players in the entire league capable of taking on defenders and creating. Other than that it is just a series of clearances and desperate attempts to control possession. I will say I am very impressed with how Atlanta came up so quickly. Miguel Almiron - Josef Martinez pairing is probably the best MLS has ever seen. Both of those guys could be playing in better leagues and surely will be sooner than later.
I don't disagree that the MLS is still an inferior league and that to be the best, you have to go overseas. No one could argue that. I also agree that with the advent of the MLS, the collegiate game should be allowed to die and the draft done away with. The MLS is not the enemy. It's an emerging tool. The academy portion is still in its infancy. They way you're talking about the MLS seems like you think it should be shut down. It is not hurting the game. It's adding to the awareness of it. I'd be willing to bet that viewership of the European leagues went up as the MLS grew. The MLS has helped to create the casual fan that soccer never had in this country before. That's not a bad thing. Having more chances to play professionally now is not a bad thing. The talent is getting better. You also can't forget that the league is still a baby when compared to the other leagues around the world. I wish people would stop with the promotion/relegation thing. It will likely never happen. Whether that's a good or bad thing, I don't know. I get why people want it. But you're not going to get owners who are now paying in the 100's of millions of dollars for franchises to agree to it. You'd have to tear up their contracts/franchise agreements and completely start over. It's the same with people whining about the calendar. We're not going to move the same calendar as other leagues. It makes no sense here. You can't have Toronto, Minnesota, Vancouver, Columbus, the new FC Cincinnati, Philadelphia, the NY teams, DC, NE playing winter games. That's why there are many other leagues around the world that don't play that same calendar. Amercanizing the game was a failure in the early years of the MLS. They've gone away from much of it but there's still more work to do. I've been involved in the game for nearly 40 years as a player, coach, league admin, and referee. The talent I see today is amazing as compared to when I was growing up. I'm very excited for the future. There's a lot of talent out there...some of which got their start because of the MLS.
HIGHLY unlikely that they’d ever consider him ever again. I won’t say never but that era of US Soccer is over.
He wasn't considered that before. He was simply put the best manager in U.S. History both on the club and national team level...before he returned. People are quick to forget and stay stuck to the moment. Same thing with Michael Bradley and how people viewed him from 2014 onwards (Basically forgetting the good years).
I think Colombia are considering Osorio and it'll be no surprise if he chooses them/if they want him. That would be quite understandable on his part. So for the USA.. I'm thinking it will be a manager from the USA. Peter Vermes, Berhalter or possibly someone else.
Leroy basically said all the good stuff to counter what you wrote...but let me add You made a few good points but the comments about MLS are absurd and silly imo. The advent of MLS is one of the greatest things to happen to American soccer ever imo. The wasteland of the 80s and early 90s was shocking and even though MLS still has A LOT more ways and things to improve, it is a solid league overall. Nothing special but not bad either. MLS wasn't and hasn't been a dead end for the many Costa Ricans, Panamanians and Hondurans plying their trade in the league and returning to help their national teams qualify for a World Cup. Generations of US Soccer players haven't been ruined. That is hyperbole. In fact generations of US Soccer players have 1) found a home league to ply their trade because it's not as if most leagues abroad were tripping over themselves to sign American players. 2) a home league to start their careers in if they choose to and then impress European teams and get a move abroad. The ruin of US Soccer happened in the period between 2009 and 2013 when a generation of players coming through the US Soccer pipeline became duds. It was obvious as the US failed to qualify for successive Olympic Soccer tournaments (2012 and 2016) and US-U20 WC. This deserves its own thread but the biggest issue for US Soccer and the biggest reason it failed to qualify for the WC imo (other than bad start by Klins, Arena deciding to stick with more veterans than youth and bad refereeing in the Panama match) was the failure of the class of US players prior to the U-20 group containing Miazga, Steffen, Carter-Vickers, Gooch, Zelalem, etc. The players coming through before that group all underachieved massively in Europe and worse...in MLS. They all turned out to be average-crap for the most part. Go look at the rosters of the US U-20s between 2008 and 2013. The US lacked players in that sweet age group of 25-29. Players hitting the right part of the football prime. Even better players in that age group doing it at a higher level in Europe(to combine with the MLS players). That led to Arena and Klinsmann sticking with players on their last "international soccer" legs and players too young to step up and do the job during qualifiers. I don't think the U.S. will have that problem for the next decade as the next class looks like a group of quality players from which a few will excel at a high level imo. Also, every country in the world has that problem once every couple of decades with their national team. At some point they'll have a weak class of young players and find their national team barely scraping by or failing altogether. Eventually the next class of young players comes through and hopefully takes over and leads the team to greater heights. I think that will be the case for the U.S. team.
Yep I just watched those a few weeks back and it's definitely impressive to see more and more youngsters making that move. PLUS the youngsters in England, Germany etc that have an American parent but grew up in the European country they are playing in.