U.S. Soccer has reached a contract extension with head coach Bob Bradley through the 2014 World Cup cycle. The federation announced the development late Monday, and U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati and Bradley are to discuss the agreement with the media on Tuesday.
It’s difficult to really know whether or not this should come as a surprise. When it comes to Bradley’s performance at the 2010 World Cup, the stance on this blog is clear. At the same time, over the last four years, Bradley certainly did what he was signed up to do, get the U.S. into the 2010 World Cup and out of the group stage as well as win (2007 Gold Cup) or finish respectably in everything else (2009 Confederations Cup, 2009 Gold Cup) that he could.
That track record would seem to be enough to earn a contract extension – if it weren’t for the fact that it seemed like U.S. Soccer was looking for a new face and Bradley himself was looking for a different challenge. It isn’t quite clear how Bradley’s body of work, particularly what was done and not done in South Africa, turned him into a candidate for the English Premier League, and it appears that it actually didn’t. As for jobs back in the U.S., Bradley wasn’t mentioned as a candidate or a target for D.C. United this offseason, and it’s got to be difficult to drop back into the grind of MLS from the top coaching spot in the country.
Again, there also certainly seemed to be some recent flirtation between U.S. Soccer and Jurgen Klinsmann, just as there was four years ago. The sticking points in discussions between Klinsmann or Gulati, if their conversation happened, could be what is most interesting about this situation, both because they would shed light on where U.S. Soccer believes it is headed, where it was seeking a departure from Bradley and where Klinsmann, an outsider relative to small U.S. Soccer circles, may have differed in his own opinions. It would be a surprise if Bradley and Gulati unveil a bold, new, changed philosophy, although it could be a possibility, and it is needed.
Instead, a certain satisfaction with the status quo is reflected by today’s announcement, at least until the plans and motivations are articulated tomorrow. There is a sizeable task at hand for Bradley, one that is both similar – given that U.S. Soccer will expect more than it got this summer in Brazil – and also very different due to the changing player pool. It’s a clear sign of the maturing soccer audience that he will be discussed, criticized, judged, scrutinized and even applauded more than ever before. That alone will make the next four years far more challenging than the last four. If nothing else, U.S. Soccer believes Bradley is up for it.
