U.S. Soccer: Win in Mexico Proves Jurgen Klinsmann Right Man to Manage

The U.S. Soccer team’s historic win in Mexico is the first feather in Jurgen Klinsmann’s cap as manager. The firing of former coach Bob Bradley in favor of the previous German national and Bayern Munich coach didn’t exactly get off to a roaring start. Yet the end of the 75-year drought playing against the gold medalist Mexico is a step in the right direction.

"I think it's huge," U.S. coach said Klinsmann to the Associated Press. "It's huge for I think all American fans, it's huge for the team, and it's historic. We were very well aware that we've never won here at the Azteca Stadium. This is an amazing experience for the all the players. We told them before the game: This moment is for you, go and grab it. We are all aware that it was a lot, a lot of work."

The latest of the Americans’ disappointments was failing to qualify for this year’s Olympics. However, this note is slightly misleading as the under-23 rule was in effect and many teams were not at full strength for the Games. The slow start to Klinsmann’s regime certainly created skeptics that his system could work for the U.S. Of course the ultimate goal is making the Americans competitive again by the 2014 World Cup and try to have a better showing than its round of 16 departure in 2010 under Bradley.

“That process involves trying out a number of players to see if they fit the mold and Klinsmann has been imaginative in his selections so far,” Yahoo’s Martin Rogers explained last year after a couple of lackluster performance by the Americans. “Unfortunately, that has not manifested itself into particularly positive play, and the lack of attacking chances has been especially worrying.”

Yet Klinsmann has the fortune of a patient American public, simply because soccer flies under the radar in the consciousness of sports fans in the States. So as Klinsmann starts to buck history and the U.S. Soccer team begins winning big games like this, the American sports fan will start to take notice. The key now is making the victory in Mexico a step forward as the U.S. will need to beat Jamaica next month in a pair of World Cup qualifiers. Failure to do so and Klinsmann will feel the ire of criticism again.