Men's National Teams

Jurgen Klinsmann is no longer the head coach of the United States Men's National Team. Most USMNT fans wanted Klinsmann out even before the debacle against Costa Rica, but most assumed Klinsmann's large buyout would keep him employed at least a little while longer.

Apparently the buyout wasn't big enough to keep Klinsmann around, but it was still a massive amount of money. No one seems to know the exact amount, but most, if not all, outlets feel safe in saying it was quite large.

Jurgen Klinsmann was handed the keys to the USMNT on the backend of an exhilarating 4-2 loss to Mexico in the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup Final. The defeat in front of over 93,000 at the Rose Bowl clearly didn’t sit well with U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati, who used the pretense of throwing away a two-goal lead to sack Bob Bradley and bring in the man he’d long coveted, Klinsmann.

U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati has confirmed that Jurgen Klinsmann is no longer head coach of the U.S. Men’s National Team. Klinsmann will also be relieved of his duties as technical director for U.S. Soccer with a teleconference call scheduled for Tuesday to discuss the changes.

U.S. Soccer has parted ways with #USMNT Head Coach and Technical Director Jurgen Klinsmann: https://t.co/iCc8DA5RGB

When Jurgen Klinsmann was first appointed USMNT boss five years ago, people expected him to come over and shake things up. It was widely understood that he was not some kind of miracle worker, however, there was a clear expectation that his pedigree would motivate players and that he’d introduce a stylish flair into the team by nurturing the next generation — undoubtedly the most talented crop of footballers this country had ever seen.

In a little over a year, the United States has witnessed some truly awful results under the leadership of Jurgen Klinsmann, but the back-to-back defeats to Jamaica and Panama to end a poor 2015 Gold Cup, defeat to Mexico at the 2015 CONCACAF Cup and historic 2-0 loss to Guatemala in the fourth round of World Cup qualifying all pale in comparison to Tuesday night’s capitulation in San Jose, Costa Rica.

The USA suffered their first home World Cup qualifying defeat since 2001 on Friday night, losing 2-1 to Mexico in Columbus for the opening game of the Hex.

Coach Jurgen Klinsmann made unexpected changes coming into the game. He sent out a 3-5-2 formation instead of the usual 4-4-2, causing some players to play out of their positions. The new formation had three center backs in defense with Matt Besler, John Brooks and Omar Gonzalez. 

Rafa Marquez, in his 13th appearance against the United States, Rafa Marquez, the scorn of American soccer dating back to to his mid-air head butt on Cobi Jones at the 2002 World Cup, Rafa Marquez, the captain on his international swan song, Rafa Marquez. That's all you need to know: Rafa Marquez.

Mexico took the lead against the United States in the first half, but Jozy Alitdore and Bobby Wood simply weren’t having it. A clear goal scoring chance was crafted out of nothing, Jozy Altidore turning his marker with all the subtlety of a bull in a china shop and sending Wood through on goal.

Wood did much of the same, simply disregarding the attentions of the Mexican defense to fire past Alfredo Talavera and equalize for the United States.

Kick off in Columbus, Ohio was greeted with resounding chants of “Dos a Cero!” from the pro-American crowd. However, the jinx has been resoundingly ended by Miguel Layun, and Mexico are desperately unlucky not to have a couple more.