The U.S. men’s national team exploded for three goals in a 11-minute span during the first half to earn a crushing 3-0 victory over European Champion Germany at Jacksonville’s Alltel Stadium. The win was the first for the U.S. under new head coach Bruce Arena, who took over in October 1998, and the first victory over Germany in four matches. The United States received goals from three of its German-based professionals — Jovan Kirovski (Fortuna Cologne), Tony Sanneh (Hertha Berlin) and Claudio Reyna (VfL Wolfsburg) — and relied defensively on MLS stars, including goalkeeper Tony Meola and defenders Robin Fraser, Jeff Agoos and C.J. Brown. “This was a great team effort for us today,” said U.S. head coach Bruce Arena. “But I don’t want to dwell on one good performance. What I’m most happy about is the fact that we have improved each week we have been together.” The United States hadn’t scored a goal in 288 minutes of action before Kirovski started the American scoring spree in the 16th minute. Jeff Agoos started the play with a pass out of the midfield to a streaking Kirovski on the left side. The 22-year-old attacking midfielder collected the pass and side-stepped German defender Markus Babbel before unleashing a ferocious, 23-yard right-footer that slammed into the upper-right corner, well out of the reach of German keeper Oliver Kahn. “I think the early goal put a lot of pressure on them,” said Kirovski. “I’m very happy with the overall team performance and think this is something good we can build on.” Eight minutes after the Kirovski goal, Sanneh doubled the U.S. lead with an exceptional individual effort. Pressuring the German defense, Sanneh stripped the ball from German World Cup midfielder Jens Jeremies and cruised in on a breakaway, drawing the keeper out and slipping a shot to the left corner past Kahn. The final strike came on 26 minutes after a nifty U.S. combination at the top of the area. A clever interchange between Reyna and Chris Armas resulted in Armas flicking a pass to Eddie Lewis inside the area on the left side. Lewis sent a low, curling pass to a wide-open Reyna, who knocked home an empty- netter to seal the win. Defensive midfielder Armas was once again the unsung hero in eliminating Germany’s most experienced midfielder Andreas Moeller. Armas provided cover for Reyna, who organized the American attack throughout the match. The win mirrored another historic U.S. victory that occurred almost one year ago to the day, when the U.S. pulled off an equally daunting feat with a victory over then World Champion Brazil on Feb. 10, 1998 in Los Angeles. The U.S. next travels to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., on Feb. 15 in preparation for a Feb. 21 full-international match versus Chile at Lockhart Stadium. The Feb. 21 match will kickoff at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be televised live on ESPN. Tickets can be purchased by calling 888-FUSION4. Feb. 6 in Jacksonville, Fla. USA 3 Germany 0. Goals: Kirovski 16, Sanneh 24, Reyna 26. USA — Meola, Fraser, Agoos, Brown, Lewis (Hejduk, 77), Armas, Reyna, Sanneh, Kirovski (Moore, 86), Jones (Lassiter, 86), McBride. Germany — Kahn, Matthaeus, Babbel, Rehmer, Zickler (Bode, 46), Jeremies, Ramelow (Nerlinger, 46), Ricken, Moeller, Preetz, Marschall. Yellow cards: USA — Sanneh 42, Armas 50; Germany — Zickler 42, Moeller 50. Referee: Gilberto Alcala (Mexico). Att.: 17,259.