Bradley...again.

So...Bob Bradley for another four years.
Dull, so very dull. Can't imagine that anyone other than Bob Bradley himself will be excited by this.
What has Bradley accomplished as the coach of the national team?
For better or for worse, he's proven that he can make the team preform at the exact level that's expected of them.
Based on player talent alone, the US should be one of the two best teams in CONCACAF...and under Bradley they are. The US should also be a solid second tier team on the world stage...and under Bradley they are.
So should he have been re-hired?
Depends on if you're the kinda person that would hit on 16 at the blackjack table.
Bradley is certainly a safe bet. He seems to command the respect of his players, which is massively important...take a look at France and England if you're not convinced of that. Tactically, he has a very straightforward approach that works well against lesser opponents, but falters against skilled teams.
The problem? He really doesn't have much of an upside, and brings nothing new to the table. No one is going to describe him as a soccer genius, or expect him to revolutionize the game.
So what does it come down to? Was this the right move?
Yes, and here's why...the US isn't ready for a great coach yet.
Remember, the job of the US coach isn't to develop talent...it's to the take the talent he has available and win games with it. And the US simply doesn't have enough talent yet to warrant the expense of a top notch coach. They are a fit, hard working, solid team...no more. They currently don't have a world class forward or a world class defender. They've relied on a solid work rate in the midfield and great goalkeeping, and that's not going to change any time soon unless someone makes some surprisingly big strides.
So let Bradley have the team for another cycle, and pray that Altidore learns to be a goal scorer, and that Davies recovers from his injuries to be the player we hopes. Pray for Gooch to prove he's worthy to play for Milan and for Spector to stop regressing. Pray that Andy Najar chooses to play for the US.
We know that Bradly can take a solid bunch of players and turn them into a solid team. Let's hope that by 2014, we'll see what he's able to do with a talented team.

Brand New Cycle

Welcome to the USA Soccer blog.
With the 2010 World Cup behind us, it's time to start looking at US soccer from a new perspective.
I'll be trying to find topics that haven't been discussed to death, and expand on them here.
Please let me know what you want to see and here.
Thanks!