There has been much talk about whether or not Jurgen Klinsmann should be fired from the USMNT. We have discussed this as well and it will remain a talking point for better or worse. More than likely, there won’t be a change until after the 2018 World Cup so…just like a Presidential election, we have way too much time to speculate who is going to get the job if there even is a change. Here are five possible replacements, from the realistic to the not so realistic, for Jurgen Klinsmann.
Peter Vermes – Sporting Kansas City
Peter Vermes seems to be the leading candidate to take over the USMNT after Russia and the planets all seem to be aligned for him to take over. Vermes matches many of the things Jurgen Klinsmann values when it comes to fitness and a willingness to play young talent.
Also, now that the U.S. Soccer National Training Center is being built in Kansas City, Vermes won’t even need to move for his new job.
Ben Olsen – D.C. United
Like Vermes, Ben Olsen is a former USMNT player and one of the young MLS managers out there. After having a couple shaky years at D.C. United that almost got him fired, Olsen has turned D.C. around, has won the U.S. Open Cup and consistently put United in the MLS Cup Playoffs. That kind of improvement is intriguing.
Jason Kreis – New York City F.C.
Jason Kreis has the experience, he built a talented team on a limited budget at Real Salt Lake and has had a year learning the “Manchester City way” as he was preparing to run NYCFC. Now that he is managing the likes of Andrea Pirlo, Frank Lampard and David Villa, Kreis has had kind of a rough season with an expansion team, but Kreis has done his best to keep things afloat. No matter who you have, managing an expansion team is tough and Kreis did the best he could this season.
Former USMNT Managers Bruce Arena or Bob Bradley
If immediate, on the field results is what the people and U.S. Soccer wants, then go back to the guy who got the USMNT to the World Cup Quarterfinals or the guy who got the USMNT to the Confederations Cup Final. I highly doubt either Arena or Bradley would want to leave the LA Galaxy or Stabaek but maybe U.S. Soccer is looking for a “blast from the past.”
Pep Guardiola – Bayern Munich
“Go big or go home.” If U.S. Soccer thought getting Klinsmann was a big deal, go one step further and go after Pep Guardiola. By 2018, if he hasn’t moved from Bayern Munich before then, he may want to go into international management after the World Cup. Stranger things have happened.
