If I recall correctly, my first reaction when the United States took the field against Mexico in February was, “Oh my! That’s a Sampson team.”
Well, maybe I didn’t say, “Oh my!” But certainly Bruce Arena’s first Hexagonal lineup sent my thoughts quickly back to the Steve Sampson era. The one that ended with three losses at France ’98, nasty in-fighting and widespread belief that the U.S. program had reached a nadir.
Sampson resigned, and Arena was quickly dubbed as the best choice to pull the program out of its crisis. He took charge in October 1998.
Having covered the Americans in France, I can attest it would have been hard to imagine seeing so many of that 32nd-place team’s members playing crucial roles in 2001.
Of the starters against Mexico, 10 players had earned caps under Sampson, nine played in qualifiers for France ’98 and nine were on the France ’98 squad. (Tony Sanneh was dropped for the finals; David Regis was brought in after qualifiers.)
Not that Sampson-era veterans should be discarded. Certainly not. They include the nation’s best players – men with valuable experience. Perhaps their current success points to an overreaction to the France ’98 failure.
But if an “Oh my!” was warranted, it’s because it’s natural to expect Arena to deliver something new and different.
The average age of Arena’s starting lineup in Columbus was 29.5. It got younger with the injury-forced entry of the post-Sampson duo of Josh Wolff (24) and Clint Mathis (24), who were instrumental in the 2-0 victory.
Successful coaching entails being able to meld fresh talent with experience – and realize when the new must replace the old.
The emphasis is on qualifying. Obviously. But being able to win while building for the future defines what it is to be a great coach.
How Arena handles that challenge is among the most intriguing aspects of the road to the 2002 World Cup.