USA Soccer President Sunil Gulati will decide coach Bob Bradley's fate in the coming weeks, and all indications are that Bradley and Team USA parting ways.

After the team qualified for the second round, you could say the campaign in South Africa was a success. But both Bradley and Gulati acknowledged disappointment considering the relatively easy path for a deeper run. Bradley, like many, believes his side was superior to Ghana, while Gulati expressed dissatisfaction considering what could've been.

There is reason to be proud, yet everyone supporting the team—even if they just jumped on the bandwagon—was left feeling empty. The emotional effects of the epic triumph over Algeria were never overcome in time for Ghana, just a few days later.

Jurgen Klinsmann, the former German national team coach, said it best when he stated, "What I mean is that they didn't recover mentally and physically from that win."

"You have bring down the players right away, you have to tell them, 'Forget about the last game, its done.'"

Spoken like a true coach, Klinsmann was just getting started. 

Klinsmann would go on: "This is the only country in the world that has the pyramid upside down. You pay for having your kid play soccer. Because your goal is not to have your kid become a professional soccer player, your goal is that your kid gets a scholarship into college, which is the complete opposite of the rest of the world."

Can Klinsmann change that thought process of parents? No. Does he have a point? Absolutely. 

He said "we" need to find ways to "connect with Hispanics... with everybody in the soccer environment in the U.S., and to get kids who are really hungry."

Meet Jurgen Klinsmann, who resides in California and was close to becoming Team USA manager in 2006. A former player and currently an unemployed coach who is living in our own backyard. His fingerprints are all over the current German team that won third place in South Africa, but was certainly capable of more.

They scored the most goals of any team in the tournament with the high-tempo attacking style Klinsmann insisted they adopt (as well as the 4-2-3-1 formation), in addition to all of their international teams, starting with the Under-17 team.

During his 2004-2006 stint with the team, he completed a marvelous overhaul of German soccer. He dropped several veteran players while bringing in fitness trainers from Arizona. 

He said, "We need to question every single ritual and habit."

Klinsmann led Germany to a third place finish in the World Cup in 2006 on their home soil. But even after his tenure ended, German soccer continued to benefit from the Klinsmann Effect . Under present day coach Joachim Loew, a Klinsmann assistant, Germany lost in the final of Euro 2008 to Spain.

German Football Federation head Theo Zwanziger, once a critic of the former coach, invited Klinsmann to accompany him in the VIP area for the match.

Zwanziger said at the time: "Jurgen played an enormous part in the development of the team. It was also his final." 

Watching the Germans this time around, and understanding that Klinsmann was the architect, it makes him an appealing coaching candidate to replace Bradley upon his departure. When Klinsmann criticizes the broken development system here, people ought to listen. Especially considering how far he's taken Germany.

Klinsmann's creation spanked England 4-1, and the FA reportedly had him lined up as the top choice to replace Fabio Capello if he was fired.

The credentials and track record, coupled with his understanding of American soccer and invaluable insight, makes him the ideal replacement. Klinsmann can take USA Soccer to the next level.

In 2006, egos got in the way and talks broke down. Sunil Gulati cannot let this opportunity slip away yet again. 

All in all, Bob Bradley did a solid job and accomplished plenty in four years. From winning the Gold Cup, which led to an eventual second place finish in the Confederations Cup, to coming in first place in World Cup qualifying, and finally topping their group in South Africa, the team has enjoyed success under Bradley.

But bringing him back for another four year cycle is unlikely. Almost all countries we saw in South Africa this summer did not have the same coach as they did in the last edition of the World Cup.

Does that mean that the US will follow suite for the sake of it? No.

But this decision will define where USA Soccer is at the moment. Hiring Klinsmann will speak volumes as to how far and how serious the federation is about winning. Bradley did a good job, without a doubt. But if the federation is no longer content with good and wants to take the next step, it needs to make a move for Klinsmann. 

Gulati talked about how Bob Bradley's squad missed out on a chance to remain in the sports spotlight back home for at least a little longer. 

Klinsmann knows what it takes. The question is, can he replicate the body of work that he obtained with the high flying, high octane Die Mannschaft in the United States?

Probably not, because Germany is richer in talent. Still, Klinsmann can certainly build upon Bradley's success, and when it comes to developing young talent, he definitely knows what he is doing.

And he's not yet taken, as he waits in California with his American wife.

The US's best player, Landon Donovan, seems on board potentially reuniting with Klinsmann, who coached him at Bayern Munich during Donovan's brief stint there.

"I had a really good experience with Jurgen. I like Jurgen a lot," Donovan told Grant Wahl in an interview with Sports Illustrated. "I know his name gets thrown around a lot and was before Bob was hired. We'll see. If Bob's here I will be very happy. Jurgen was a guy I liked a lot and respected. If he were here I'd also be happy."

Sounds like a ringing endorsement.

Alexi Lalas, a former player for the national team and now ESPN analyst, compared the coaching position to a relay race. 

"Every part of a relay race is important, and they probably all have different strengths that are important in that specific time period," Lalas said. "But you might have to use different people at different times to get you there."

It is time for Bob Bradley to pass on the baton, but he can do so with his head held high, after silencing many critics in his four years (save for his lineup mistakes against Ghana). He has moved the program forward and has increased his chances for opportunities overseas.

Klinsmann once visited a leadership conference by Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski. Sooner or later, him and Krzyzewski could end up sharing a nickname if he indeed takes over for Bob Bradley and overachieves.

And I wouldn't bet against it.