Our Dream Has Come True: Jurgen Klinsmann Is Finally The Head Coach Of U.S. Men's Soccer

When you're an adult, it's very rare that you have any dreams anymore let alone ones that come true. Cynical? A bit but I think it's also realistic. With that out of the way, I will admit that there's not much in my sporting fandom that I wanted more than what just transpired with the U.S. men's national soccer team in the past 24 hours.

Yesterday, Bob Bradley was fired after five years on the job. Today, former German star and coach Jurgen Klinsmann was appointed as the new head coach.

Klinsmann had a distinguished playing career, highlighted by winning the World Cup in 1990 and European championship in 1996 with Germany, but has had only fleeting spells in management, first with Germany and later Bayern.

He has also lived primarily in the United States since retiring from playing, and has frequently been linked with the national team job and vacancies in Major League Soccer.

"I am proud and honoured to be named the head coach of the US Men's National Team," said Klinsmann, who will take charge of his first match on August 10 against rivals Mexico.

"I would like to thank the US Soccer Federation for the opportunity, and I'm excited about the challenge ahead.

"I am looking forward to bringing the team together for our upcoming match against Mexico and starting on the road toward qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.''

Klinsmann enjoyed an outstanding playing career that lasted 17 years and included spells with Stuttgart, Inter Milan, Monaco, Tottenham and Bayern Munich.

He scored 47 goals in 108 appearances for Germany and West Germany, and retired from playing in 1998, and took his first management job with Germany in 2004.

He led them to third place in the 2006 World Cup on home soil, but stepped down from the role after the tournament. Two years later, he took charge of Bayern, reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League, but left after one season.

Shimer and I have been having wet dreams about this juicy rumor since it almost happened last summer. Klinsmann truly is the ideal candidate for the U.S. Not only has he experienced the game at the highest level as a player (with Germany and numerous European clubs) but he has also coached the German national team (one of the world's best) and Bayern Munich-a German club that is one of the most respected in Europe. Finally, don't underestimate how much instant credibility he brings to Europeans and South Americans who are quick to make fun of the U.S. team.

Before any zenophobic U.S. fans start to fret that he's not an American so he won't get us, don't worry. He's lived in California for years so the language and cultural barrier should be minimal. Most importantly, players respect guys that have been there before. Klinsmann is better than any U.S. player in history, he's on the younger side and he is all about building a program (rather than just being a taskmaster like Bradley).

No details of his contract with the United States have been released.

"We are excited to have Jurgen as the head coach of our men's national team,'' said US Soccer president Sunil Gulati. "He is a highly accomplished player and coach with the experience and knowledge to advance the program.

"Jurgen has had success in many different areas of the game and we look forward to the leadership he will provide on and off the field.''

Klinsmann will be introduced at a press conference in New York on Monday.

If he fails, so be it. There was no better candidate and props to U.S. soccer president Sunil Gulati for getting this done so fast. Klinsmann will fittingly make his U.S. coaching debut against their biggest rival-Aug. 10 in Philadelphia against Mexico. Tickets for that match had to be hard to come by in the first place and now it's a historical moment for U.S. soccer fans.

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You Can Count On Argentina To Make A Crappy Choice For Its Head Coach

It's hard to get too excited when Argentina hires a new head coach. Mostly because it seemingly happens every few months and it is always a terrible choice.

Step right up Alejandro Sabella.

Sabella, 56, coached Estudiantes to the Copa Libertadores and had been due to take charge of Al-Jazira in the United Arab Emirates before Batista's exit, which was prompted by a disappointing Copa America showing.

Jose Luis Meiszner, the general secretary of the Argentine Football Association, told Telam: "The decision has been taken. Sabella is the choice."

Sabella will be instructed to make a success of one of world football's most talented squads, where he will be able to pick from the likes of Lionel Messi, Javier Mascherano, Sergio Aguero, Carlos Tevez, Gonzalo Higuain and Angel Di Maria, amongst others.

Who knows? Maybe Sabella can turn things around for one of the world's most talented national teams. Until that happens, I have my doubts.

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Smell Ya Later Bob Bradley, Don't Let The Door Hit You On The Way Out

You know how you wake up some days and you have no idea that it will be a great day? Then other times, days you look forward to for weeks fail to meet lofty expectations.

I've stumbled onto one of the former cases today as I found out on Twitter this afternoon-while I watched the Red Sox game-that U.S. men's soccer had fired head coach Bob Bradley.

Being currently unemployed, I can't gloat too much about Bradley's departure even though Shimer and I (along with most knowledgeable fans) have been clamoring for it for a while now. It has felt like the team needed a change since they got bounced by Ghana last summer in the 2010 World Cup, played listlessly in friendlies and most recently, lost to Mexico 4-2 in the Gold Cup Final (after leading 2-0).

It seemed like Bradley's time in charge had run its course and rather than getting better the team was at best spinning its wheels and at worst, falling behind the form they had been showing they were capable of the last few years.

As boring as he is (I can tell you first-hand, I've sat through a couple of his press conferences), my bigger gripe with Bradley is that he lacked any imagination or creativity in terms of picking a roster, filling out a lineup and making in-game substitutions. Bigger picture, U.S. soccer needs to bring in a European (cough Juergen Klinsmann) that can help rebuild our cultural identity from the youth program up to the national team.

Yes, it's a lot to ask of one guy but the U.S. has a chance to hit a home run here if they hire the right person. The U.S. men are good but they will never make a jump to great and one of the top teams in the world without some drastic changes. That might sound crazy but think about it; with the right program, who's to say how good the U.S. could be in a few World Cup cycles.

In his 4.5 years (Jan. 2007) on the job, highlights of Bradley's regime included winning the 2007 Gold Cup, beating Spain in the 2009 Confederations Cup then losing to Brazil in the final 3-2 and winning their group in last summer's World Cup. On paper, his resume looks pretty damn good. Especially when you consider that he had the second-most wins as a U.S. head coach.

However, this was long overdue. Goodbye Bob, thanks for your hard work and best of luck in your future endeavors.

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Does Anybody Want To Coach Argentina?

For a country that boasts the world's best player (Lionel Messi) and another one of the best goal-scorers on Earth (Carlos Tevez), Argentina sure knows how to burn through its national team coaches in record time.

By virtue of winning one game in the 2011 Copa America tournament (eventually won by Uruguay 3-0 over Paraguay yesterday), Sergio Batista was shown the door after only one year on the job.

Moving on from the bat shit crazy Diego Maradona was a logical decision but replacing him with basically a low-rent version did not work out at all.

Batista, who took over a year ago, was Argentina's fourth coach in five years and had the same problem as his predecessor Diego Maradona: little tactical experience and an inability to get superstars to play as a team rather than as individuals.

Alejandro Sabella, former coach of Argentine club Estudiantes, and Paraguay coach Gerardo Martino -- an Argentine -- are seen as the favorites to replace him. Also being mentioned as a successor is former Boca Juniors and Atletico de Madrid coach Carlos Bianchi.

Maybe it will take an outsider to help Argentina morph from a group of stars into a star-powered team. There's no reason why they can't be one of the top squads in every competition they play in. They have way too much talent to be this inconsistent. This non-stop coaching carousel probably isn't helping their chemistry either so we won't hold our breath that it will be any different with the next skipper.

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Alejandro Bedoya Moving On Up: From Sweden (Orebro) To Scotland (Rangers)

Other than Freddy Adu, nobody on the U.S. men's national team improved their stock more than midfielder Alejandro Bedoya during last month's Gold Cup.

Today, the former Boston College star agreed to terms with Scottish champions Glasgow Rangers. He's signed a pre-contract and will join the club in the January transfer window on a three-year deal.

Bedoya joined the U.S. Gold Cup squad after midfielder Benny Feilhaber (of the New England Revolution) went down with an injury right before the tournament started. Life is all about making the most of opportunities and Bedoya did just that. He worked his way up from a substitute to starting later in the tournament.

He had been playing for Swedish club Orebro (where former BC teammate Charlie Davies made his mark) and having the best season of his three-year pro career. Bedoya is only 24 and now he gets to play in the Champions League. Even better, his U.S. teammate Maurice Edu is still with Rangers so any culture shock shouldn't be too bad while Edu can tell him what to expect about the underrated Scottish league.

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2011 World Cup Final: U.S. Women Fall In Penalty Kicks to Japan, 3-1

The 2011 U.S. women's soccer team did not complete their final and most important task: winning the World Cup in Germany this summer but it's a given that they gained a whole new generation of fans (male and female) stateside with their incredible tournament run.

Their loss to Japan in penalty kicks (3-1) was stunning but it shouldn't overshadow a very likable team filled with many new faces and characters that performed very well after stumbling in qualifying for this tournament. I love soccer so I'm obviously bias but I always appreciate the game at its highest level no matter what that entails (high school, soccer, pro, men's, women's). Yes the field is smaller (16 teams vs. 32 teams) but the U.S. women have already won two World Cups while the U.S. men will probably never come close to that in my lifetime. Therefore, you have to appreciate when any U.S. team can excel this much in the world's most popular sport.

I'm sure they were beyond sick of being compared to teams of the past but now Hope Solo, Abby Wambach (first American with a goal in four straight World Cup games), Alex Morgan, Lauren Cheney, Megan Rapinoe and Co. are household names that will hopefully spur more development for soccer in the United States. In the summer, we always look for diversions beyond baseball and this Women's World Cup was a particularly memorable one featuring numerous exciting games topped by an improbable comeback by the U.S. over Brazil in the quarterfinals (2-1) and then a 3-1 victory against France in the semifinals.

A 12-year drought since the U.S.' last World Cup trophy (the seminal moment in 1999: the penalty kicks win over China at the Rose Bowl) appeared to be over today as Pia Sundhage's squad took a 1-0 lead in the 69th minute with an exquisite goal by Morgan. Japan answered quickly as a terrible giveaway in the back led to a goal by Yuki Nagasoto in the 80th minute.

As the game headed to extra time, Japan seemed to have all the momentum but the U.S. responded with a goal in the 104th minute as Abby Wambach (her 14th all-time for the U.S. in the World Cup) headed in a perfect cross from Morgan. Yet once again, Japan wasn't rattled as Homare Sawa (winner of the Golden Boot-best player and Golden Ball-most goals (5)) tied it with a redirection off a Japanese corner kick in the 117th minute-the latest goal ever in a Women's World Cup Final.

From there, the U.S.' first three shooters (Shannon Boxx, Carli Lloyd and Tobin Heath) all had their shots saved or missed while Japan hit two of its first three. That put the United States behind the eight ball and it was basically a foregone conclusion they were done as Japan clinched it 3-1. Debating the merits of penalty kicks to decide a World Cup game is an argument for another day. I'm not a fan of them either (like most people) but that's what has been done forever so don't expect draconian FIFA to change it up anytime soon.

Let's also not forget that the United States absolutely dominated in the first half, particularly the first 30 minutes or so but they couldn't cash in any of their great chances. Unfortunately as it usually does, that came back to haunt them as the contest tightened up in the second half and extra time.

Maybe because I saw all the games from start to finish or the players are mostly around my age bracket but I felt a special connection with this group. Twitter and social media made them much more accessible than before and you could get a taste of the whole experience just by reading what they had to say in their downtime abroad.

Where does the U.S. team go from here? The next World Cup isn't for another four years but in between, they'll have the Olympics (which use to be the biggest international competition for soccer) in 2013 and then qualifying for 2015. This is a mostly young team that should return the nucleus of its team (Solo, Heather O'Reilly, Wambach, Cheney, Rapinoe) for another shot at that elusive third World Cup title.

I'd be remiss if I didn't say congratulations to Japan as well. It clearly wasn't the result that any American wanted but if any country deserved it, Japan fits the bill. After the earthquake and tsunami in Japan earlier this year, it is only fitting that an Asian country won its first Women's World Cup.

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2011 Women's World Cup: U.S. vs. France 2nd half live blog

Second half is underway. No changes for the U.S., Delie is out for France.

This is getting silly, the U.S. can't do anything with the ball. They continue to give it away. They can't play this way with 40 minutes left, France is going to take advantage at some point.

Bompastor ties it up in the 55th minute. Her cross went right on goal, a France player couldn't connect but it went off the post and in. Not Solo's fault, you could see this goal coming from a mile away. (1-1)

First U.S. sub: Alex Morgan in for Rodriguez.

Krieger rolls her ankle and comes off the field for a moment.

The U.S. is looking really shaky. Two corners for France. Megan Rapinoe in for Lloyd (second U.S. sub).

15 of France's 20 shots have come from outside the box.

Cheney wins a free kick outside the France area. Rapinoe puts it on net, forcing a dicey save by the French goalkeeper. Morgan is ruled offsides (by a hair, if that) before her rebound was save.

Wow, Morgan is taken down on a through ball that was bouncing. No call, so much contact.

WTF? A French player goes to head the ball out of Solo's hands. Yet no card? Haha never seen that before. As usual for this tournament, the referees have been abysmal.

France has never reached the final of a major tournament (World Cup, Olympics).

Thomis in for France, captain Soubeyrand is out.

U.S. wins a corner. Wambach got knocked down in the box on a 50-50 ball. Cheney floats it to the far post and Wambach heads it in. (2-1 U.S in the 79th minute). Her third goal in five matches, tying Akers for first all-time for the U.S (12 goals).

France misses a header from in close, Delis would have put that one in. Thanks for subbing her out Bruno.

Morgan makes it 3-1 after a great find from Rapinoe. Seemed like she waited too long as she came down the side but she lifted it over the French goalkeeper. Great strike, big for her confidence. That's what she's capable of doing.

Five of her eight goals for the U.S. have come in or after the 80th minute.

Tobin Heath in for O'Reilly. Last U.S. sub, outstanding performance by O'Reilly. She's a rock in the midfield, one of the U.S.' most consistent players in every game.

Morgan almost adds a second goal. France is pushing forward and she gets a semi-breakaway, forcing a good save by France's goalkeeper. U.S. corner.

Yellow card for Thomis, hard challenge on LePeilbet.

Two minutes of added time.

It's all over, the U.S. wins 3-1 and advances to their first Women's World Cup final since 1999. Great response after playing bad for much of the match. The subs (Rapinoe, Morgan) totally changed the momentum of the game and made winning plays. Excellent goals by Wambach and Morgan. Nice to see Morgan get a goal too, that'll be big for her confidence. She's a baller.

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