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On Monday, U.S. Soccer announced that Jürgen Klinsmann has been fired as head coach and technical director of the U.S. Men’s National Team. Now speculation has turned to who will be the next coach and it sounds like it will be a familiar name.
According to Grant Wahl of Sports Illustrated, U.S. Soccer will re-hire former coach Bruce Arena, who coached the United States in both the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. Arena is currently the coach of the Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer.
An announcement could come as early as Tuesday.
Klinsmann fired. Source: Bruce Arena set to take over. Could be announced as soon as tomorrow.
— Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) November 21, 2016
Martin Rogers of USA Today also reports that Arena will be hired as early as Tuesday.
At the 2002 World Cup, the United States surprised most by reaching the quarterfinals before losing 1-0 to Germany. That match, and the performance overall in the tournament earned the United States and Arena praise in the world of international soccer.
However, in 2006, the United States fell short of their loftier expectations, finishing last in their group and failing to advance to the knockout stage. After that tournament, Arena’s contract was not renewed and he was replaced by Bob Bradley.
With the Galaxy, Arena has won three MLS Cup championships. Previously, he won two MLS Cup titles as coach of D.C. United.