Arenabruce_usmntjt03417317

How is Bruce Arena doing as U.S. coach?

When U.S. Soccer axed Jurgen Klinsmann as national team coach and replaced him with Bruce Arena, many fans applauded what they considered a practical solution while others bemoaned the lack of long-term thinking. Well, how do you like the move now? Graph your position below and share a few thoughts. Hover over shaded cells to read what others have to say.

Posted
July 03, 2017 2:15 PM
True Savior
Absolute Nightmare
Yanks Will Prosper in Russia U.S. Won't Qualify
1 — kpbbyiym
In Bruce we trust. — Skip
1 — arachni_name
He's doing great! — Ted Ryno
He's the right guy but just not time yet — Christian
Better then I expected. — Bootby
I'll tell you what, the players like playing for Bruce and being around him 1000000x more than for JK...so that's worth something. People who are comfortable and content in their environment tend to perform at a higher level over a longer period of time than folks who hate who they are working/playing for. Proven facts. "People leave managers, not companies"--same rule applies here. — Todd Weinberg III
Bruce will easily go down as the best coach in history until we win the cup someday. Right now we just don't have a complete team with depth. Acosta, Villafana won't be good enough in the cup. No keeper is even close to Belgium Howard. Jozy still needs to come up big in big games. It's coming, but not yet. — Taylor
I worry that this is the end of an era and that top performers are advancing in age, but Arena seems to have brought the swagger back to the US side which will serve them well for years to come. — Kevin
The Juice did 9/11 — OJ SImpson
I'm going higher up on "True Savior" than "Will Prosper." While it's no guarantee that Arena would have picked up points in our first two Hex matches, there's no arguing that the team was looking like a dumpster fire. Furthermore, there's no arguing with an unbeaten record through eight matches. While I have a good feeling about Russia '18 (please draw Group A!), it's not as clear a proposition as Bruce-as-savior. — OGx3
The absence of peculiar roster (e.g. leaving LD off of WC team) and starter decisions is quite refreshing. — Joe
Bruce is killing it. Aside from Mexico and Costa Rica, he hasn't faced any other top 20 teams. I'd like to see them take on some higher level challenges. Still, Bruce has clearly given the team an identity again, and the players seem really comfortable under him. A regular lineup and a well thought out gameplan is just what the doctor ordered. — Harry Redmane
Bruce is a pro. JK sucked. USA! — Fredo
Qualify and reach the knockout round in the WC. — SF
Arena saved the USMNT in qualifying, and they'll get to Russia. But the squad will struggle to make a significant impact in the WC beyond the group stage due to inherent talent limitations compared to elite teams. — DF
Needs to get away from his favorites a bit but he's clearly a savior. — Will
Bruce has a done a fine job. With the team in Nashville I decided to scout out some local eats. Southern food is quite the comfort food. Although I had to knock off 1 star on yelp because of the country music. Hip-hop is more my vibe. Heh. — Ives
Good coach doing a good job but still relies to heavily on veterans like Bradley, Dempsey, Jones, Howard, etc. These guys are the past and won't do anything beyond mediocre in Russia. Time to give the reigns to Dax, Acosta, Wood, Dwyer, Nagbe, Gonzalez and others who have proven they can play at a high level. — Peter
savior yes because we needed a complete coach under those conditons and times and i like this team alot better the than previous WC team so its quite possible they can go farther too. — capitan macpatton
For the most part, he picks the right players and communicates to them their roles. Sticking with Zusi, and adding Wondo, from time to time, are mistakes. And Guzan is purely a 3rd string keeper. He's got too much of the shakes. — Brendan
He's like Tim Tebow, the man knows how to win. Even if it isn't pretty — Mom
Yes — Bk
Bruce has been solid. Understands the players, puts them in a position to succeed, doesn't arbitrarily blow off MLSers. I like where we're at now, which is saying something from the dread inspired by the end of the JK era. Give Pulisic a couple of other young, fearless strikers/midfielders to build around and this could be a dangerous group well into the future. — JayDee
BRIAN SCIARETTA BLEW A LOAD IN MY ASS!!! — John Godfrey
Klinsmann was a disaster. Arena was perfect coach to right the ship. USMNT will get out of the group -- beyond that, it's a crapshoot — ChelseaMatt33
It may not be pretty, but Bruce is doing what he was brought in to do: get the team to Russia. — Zachary S.
Good for the cycle. Related question: if You want to compete with EURO or CONMEBOL, don't you have a coach from said Federations? Don't those coaches blend players from several federations? — Tim
Arena brings pride back to the USMNT, and his no nonsense approach will make us all forget about JK's ego and ineptitude as a coach. We will win some games, but we may not improve much on our WC 2014 showing. However, we will play tough, we will play as a team, and we will play with pride for our country. That's all we can ask for. — DT
Pulled USA out of the fire, setting us up well for Russia and the next coach. — Andy R
Imagine that... a man with decades of actual coaching EXPERIENCE! Arena was a good coach before, and years on he is even better now. Considering our prospects in 2011 with Donovan, Howard, Dempsey, Bradley and others players at various stages of their prime we missed an opportunity to move US Soccer to the next level by hiring a fraud with a two-bullet coaching resume. Gulati should step down. — Tad
Great job! — j
Pragmatic and consistent Which are good traits on national team coach. Not trying to change the culture of US Soccer but winning games. — Scott
He's doing ok.costa Rica he didn't set the up well. Otherwise fine. — Tj
Bruce is doing a fine job, and I'm glad to see Klinsy go. We may not make it out of the Group in 2018, depending on the draw. But, the best chance for us to move on to the next round is to bring in Sargent and to coax Donovan back for a final run. Although we have a decent squad now, it is becoming more and more apparent that Donovan brought so much to the field every time he donned the jersey for us. I would love to see Bruce give him a proper send-off. LD could surprise all of us, and always seems to work very well with Dempsey and Bradley. — pete
Team looks like they actually have a strategy in mind. Didn't think we would make it or if the group if we made it to the World Cup with JK. Now I feel like that should at the very least be our expectation. Going any further is going to take a favorable matchup but anything is possible. Would like more Acosta and less Bradley still. — James
Saved our qualification campaign, but we have a very old core right now. Don't feel we are in position to do very well in Russia (not his fault). — Rick
U.S. would not be positioned to qualify without Bruce. Will that translate to advancing in Russia? Dunno..... — JHG
Qualify and crash. Unhappy watching long balls — Tim bobcats
Ily Bruce — Justin
We are gonna win the world cup. (Sorry I'm drunk) depending on our group draw, I expect to advance out of the group. After that, it's a crap shoot — Joe
Perfect for this moment in time — Paul A
We were looking like we'd miss out on Russia 6 months ago, and now it looks like almost a sure thing. That's got to count for something. I honestly wonder how much he can do with the players he has. — Alex
Yet to be truly tested. I like what I've seen so far, however. — Chris
I think he is an excellent coach. — Tom Aycock
"Savior" implies long-term comfort and/or the idea that no one else could have done the job. I don't think either of those is true. But honestly, this is among the easiest of these questions you've asked. — Adam
Klinsmann had us looking 1998-bad. Not only was there zero progress, we regressed. Arena immediately turned the ship around. Qualifying and performing in Russia will be the ultimate benchmarks, but Arena has 11 more years of experience to help him, and I am again optimistic for the first time in years. — Grunt
Decent so far — Bill
Arena is a big improvement over the clueless snake oil salesman Klinsmann that's for sure. It's almost like he has an actual plan, based on the strengths and weaknesses of his players, and then they implement an actual gameplan that the players have already practiced. How innovative! How well the US does at the World Cup will depend on how well Arena can utilize the talent and depth we now have. Hopefully he doesn't stick with "his guys" like Jermaine Jones, Gyasi Zardes, Damarcus Beasley, and mediocre veterans like Graham Zusi and Alejandro Bedoya. There are better players out there, use them! — Bobb
Arena was brought in to get USMNT to the 2018 World Cup however, he also appears to have taken on bring in up the next generation of players to the national team sense. But I feel he is too much Pro MLS players & is missing out on some of European talent by not including them in the Gold Cup roster, even after a long season. — USKeeper
Gotta bring in Danny Williams and Chandler and Dwyer permanently, and quit on Zusi/Beasley/Wondo permanently — Jeremy
We are certainly on a much better track. — Dakota Sillyman
He hasnt made a ton of bad moves (though keeping Bedoya and Zusi around qualify) but his good moves have won out (Nagbe, Pulisic in 10 role, Dwyer). Things look to be stabilized if nothing else for the immediate term of WCQ. Still lack an identity (cant keep possession and not clinical in final 3rd at all) but at least there is some progress made. A willingness to adjust tactics has been welcomed. — BK
Cc — Fred
Nothing to complain about...yet — Mark
He's righted the ship and gotten the team back on board. He's not the long term answer but he'll he'll do enough for Russia '18 to be considered moderately successful... — BMD15
The team is on the right track, Bruce deserves credit for stabilizing things. — USAmr
Not hard to look good when you follow an unqualified political used car salesman TBH. BS must be salivating over MLS talent now, and what he had to work with between 2002 and 2006. Oh wait...under JK's watch the lil kids told me Honduras and Panama had just as good, if not better talent than the US. All of MLS blows. It's not JK's fault we suck. What a bunch of easily manipulated suckers. — TK
Stuttgart Baker is finally gone — Ernst
Definitely an improvement but still needs to get the tactics right. — Tom Knauff
Not a Narcissist like his predecessor (or #45). — Andrew W
US will qualify. Would be higher if Bruce were to take the reins of the team pat the World Cup cycle. He's. Holding a good player pool but unsure if they will be the same personnel if a new manager comes. Doing a good job this far with a more attack oriented formations instead of bunkering. Wish there were more possession in games against the likes of Mexico and Coasta Rica. Going to need that moving forward. We have the personnel to do it (large pool of up and coming midfielders with talent and vision), now it's time to move towards that goal. He should experiment during some friendlier or very weak competition. — Sonny Buenteo
Not a savior, but it was time for a change as the team was spinning its wheels. It's also time to raise our expectations beyond making the knockout round at the World Cup, and demand quarters/semis as an acceptable level. Finding the balance between integrating upcoming talent and keeping continuity with steadying veteran experience will be key. — John R
We'll make it out of the Hex, but I don't feel Bruce is the long term answer as coach. — JB
Good for now. But not necessarily a true long term solution. — Sam
I think Bruce is doing what we expected him to do. — Andrew
about here — ckadams
— Ryan
His 2018 WC performance will contribute a lot to whether he is regarded as the 'true savior' of US Soccer coaching. — CTB
just fine — tga
We are 5 and 9 years away from being a really good team. Will make Russia and get 3 points and done. — Dave
The team plays better together now and the players play in position which makes me more confident going toward WC2018. I don't think he's the long term solution though. — d
It's amazing how much picking the right players, putting them in positions/roles they are familiar with and which fit their skills/playstyle, and spending time working with the team on tactics (instead of putting players in unaccustomed roles and telling them to express themselves) has improved results. — Pwyll
He has done a good job so far as coach and brought a change to the mentality that the players buy into, but I am unsure how he is going to incorporate our old guard with the new players Klinsmen called up. As a US fan, I always remain positive about our abilities! — TreesRHigh
Good enough for now — Tristin
Strong 2018 showing. Paves way for visionary coach for next gen. — T.Alewine
Good but important to keep expectations realistic imho — Scrat03
The problem is our talent and tactics need to be deeper. — Steven Bramlett
Too much talent, needed some direction. — Granger
Make the knockout stages again... — Finidi George
Arena has done enough so far. Nothing flashy or sophisticated, just doing the job he was hired to do. Don't expect anything spectacular in Russia — Zach
wins are nice against concacaaf....but needlessly conservative in some games and hasnt shown he can exceed the status quo. alos, i feel like has a roster selection issues that will ultimately come back to bite the team in the big games when some of his faves are shown to be inadequate. — jerkin klownsmann
Average as expected — Tim Grove
Awesome work — Jonathan V
It'll be a tough road to be sure — Timm
a change needed to be made but this guy wont take us nowhere the promise land — ed_hutch
Knockout round! — James
The US does not deserve to qualify, due the level they've been playing. — Stephen
Doing a great job as a fill in/ reestablishing the USA way — Paul
He's done well so far, but I think there are probably better options. At least we know what we're getting from him as opposed to JK. — Jacob
Gold Cup and almost qualified. Does exactly what you'd expect. — Scott
US was never truly in danger of not qualifying, Arena did what needed to be done but nothing more. We will finish 2nd in our group and lose in Round of 16 again. — Aidan
The only thing he's accomplished so far is getting a point at the Azteca. A high school coach could have done the rest. — The realist
At best he's temporarily stabilized a sinking ship, the players still lack passion and any "experimental" moves have been ill conceived or just not nearly as experimental as the media would have us believe. We were likely to qualify with or without Bruce and there has been an unacknowledged regression since he's taken the helm. I expect USMNT will perform as expected in Russia, but in the long term Bruce's second tenure will not be good for US Soccer. — AM
What made the US so tough to play against 10 years ago was the intensiveness we brought to every game. We never had the skill set of most other teams we played against but we always would outwork them. That got us some victories. The talent level is still at the same level but the fight is gone. It didn't matter whether JK or BA or Bob Bradley was the coach. 10 years ago, we never would've lost to Costa Rica like that. Especially on home soil.I don't know if Bruce is trying to put that fight back, or if someone has to take this team by the balls and put it on their back. Dempsey was the last player to do that but he's not playing as much as he used to. Everyone expects Pulisic to be that guy but he won't until all the older players are gone if at all. We will get to Russia, but a this rate, we won't last the group stage. — Lou
MLS is not the answer. — Arnold
results are good but his methods will leave the team with a lower than necessary ceiling in Russia — usmnt fan
i hope bruce is replaced before russia — go usa
So much for development. — BJ
Alex Morgan has a tight pussy, but I think she gave me AIDS. — Frankie Hejduk
<- Classic Frankie! LMAO — Landon Donovan
He's a temporary stop-gag without much vision. He might solidify the team to get them qualified, but he's absolutely not the long-term solution. — Doug
Short sighted — Mike
If he continues to focus on MLS players... — Johnny
Arena is a soppy buttox. — Broome
US won't qualify. We will lose to Panama and Lose to New Zealand in the play in game. Outdated coach in an outdated US Soccer. The reactionaries won, and installed their relic. We'll pay the price for decades to come. — Bill Anderson
Panama game proves hes no genius — Brad
We will probably qualify but it will come at a cost. As JK said we lost a generation of players (between the >30 and <20( that never made it to an international level) and this team is suffering because of it. Out at the group stages unless this team looks radically different next summer. — Jon
The only thing he's done better than JK is putting in a natural LB, other than that the team is still the same average team it was before he took over. We will qualify. We were always gonna qualify but we'll go no further than the round of 16 — JM
Appears to be more interested in promoting the MLS than actually fielding a quality team. The US should qualify, but seem unlikely to advance out of the group stage unless he starts fielding the European based players — Pete
Gulati panicked and made a "scared" hire of Arena. Don't understand why people are completely dismissing our collapse in the 2006 World Cup. Except for an Italy own goal, we go 0-3 in the group under Bruce. If you've got to get rid of Klinsmann, at least find somewhat of a visionary to replace him. And I think "prospering in Russia" should mean getting past the Round of 16. Based on our past performance, getting through the group is almost expected at this point. — Hunter
Will get to World cup but not past the group stage — Ryan
arena is the right man for this WC. after that ...time cor new blood. — zardoz
clueless tactics, success only against B teams, defense is totally lost. Looks a lot like his last term as coach. — DW
Perhaps the worst US coach in history. Can only beat low level teams at home. — Chess
The USMNT was never in danger of not qualifying. Arena is a boring place-holder for the future coach — John
wtf — jukk ti
Arena proved himself to be the worst coach in US history. — Chip
Yikes — Ben
he's bad — he's bad
:( — :(
Not great Bob — Bob
Marginally better than Klinsmann, but that ain't saying much. USMNT will not qualify for 1st time in nearly 30 years. SAD — Andreas Bremer
First — Sad day
heck — scott
We all know what happen — Ethan Villalba
He failed — ab2010
Bruce should stop calling up MLS lames — MWD
Fuck Bruce — Every soccer fan
Close_button
AmericanSoccerNow.